Love Marauder Style
by xIzzyandSiriusx
Summary: Story of Liz, Lily, James, and Sirius. I suck at summaries but the story is awesome. Please read. Rated M for later chapters. Thanks to my BFFL Kat. Please review, too. SBOC, JPLE.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

A/N: This was a story before, but I didn't like it so I'm rewriting it. Please review!

Liz Potter was about to go swimming. And for most people, swimming is not something that requires lip gloss and eyeliner. But when you're Liz Potter, it does. As you can already tell, she was a very odd fourteen year old.

Her best friend, Lily Evans, was tapping her foot impatiently. Lily was the more rational one of the two. "Liz," she said, "you do realize what we're doing, don't you?" Liz nodded. "So why must you take two hours to put on makeup when it will wash right off anyway?" Liz sighed.

"I told you the other day. Don't you remember?" Lily stared at her blankly. Exasperated, Liz continued, "Sirius and my brother are coming. And as I told you yesterday, Sirius will never see me again unless I look completely gorgeous." Lily shut her eyes and nodded. She was used to Liz's obsessive behavior by now, especially when Sirius Black was involved.

"Of course."

Meanwhile, James Potter and his best friend, Sirius Black, were standing outside of the Potters' very large summer home. Both were dressed in only shorts and sunglasses. "What's taking so long?" James wondered. As soon as he spoke, the front door opened. Liz and Lily came out, laughing. Liz immediately went to hug her brother. Lily stood farther away with her arms crossed.

"Potter," she said as a hello. Liz glared at her.

"You promised you would be nice!" Liz hissed.

"I am nice," Lily said crossly. They began to argue quietly.

James and Sirius were staring at the girls. "Prongs, buddy," Sirius said, "you might want to look away. Lily won't like you if she thinks you're creepy." James nodded but didn't move his eyes from her. After a minute, he looked up. Sirius stared at him incredulously.

"What?" James said.

"You were staring. Again."

"Yeah, well..." James muttered, "isn't that what sunglasses are for?"

Sirius grinned and lowered his Aviators. "Right you are. But, listen, when did your sister get... I don't know, like, kind of hot?" James glared at him.

"That's my sister. My fourteen year old sister. Can't you find a different summer fling?" Sirius shook his head stubbornly.

"I didn't say I wanted to go out with her. I just think she, er, grew up, since I last saw her."

By that time, Lily and Liz had stopped arguing. Liz caught Sirius's eye and grinned. "I heard that," she said. Sirius returned the smile.

"Hey, Liz," he said. James watched him suspiciously.

Later, Lily and James were sitting by the side of the pool. Lily had her feet in the water. James hugged his legs to his chest and glanced over to where Liz and Sirius were. The two of them were laughing and joking, drying to dunk each other underwater. Lily took a deep breath, Cautiously, she said, "Look, Potter. James. Whatever. You know I normally wouldn't talk to you under any circumstances, but..."

"I definitely know that," James said wistfully.

"Liz is my best friend, and, unfortunately, you are related to her. So I suppose I'll just have to deal with you. But really, I'm sure you know this already, she likes-"

"Sirius," James finished.

"Exactly. And just look at them. They would be perfect. If he would realize it..."

James just sat there. "I know. I Think they might need a little assistance with that."

Lily smiled ruefully. "So we have a deal, then? We try to get them together?" She held out her hand.

James shook it. "Operation Lirius is in motion." Lily raised her eyebrows.

"Lirius? Really."

James shrugged. "You know, Liz. Sirius. Lirius! Unless you prefer Siz?"

Lily yawned. "Lirius it is, then."

That night, Liz and Lily were awake late, talking. "So what were you saying to him, really?" Liz asked for the fifth time.

"I told you," Lily said, "we agreed that we're going to have to stand each other." Liz was quiet for once. You did that my first year, she thought.

"I don't believe you," Liz announced. Lily stuck out her tongue.

"I'm not telling," Lily insisted.

"Aha!" Liz cried, "So you admit you were lying, then?"

Lily looked at the ceiling. "Fine. But I'm still not telling."

Liz smiled evilly. "Then I'll go ask James."

"It's four in the morning!" Liz nodded and stood up.

"I know," she said, and walked to James's room quietly. James and Sirius were asleep, and one of them was snoring very loudly. Liz poked the closest one with her toe. "Get up!" she hissed.

The figure sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Liz?" Sirius's sleepy voice asked, "It's not morning yet."

"Sorry!" she said quickly, "I need to talk to James. He's there?" She pointed to the snoring body. Sirius nodded.

"What is it, though? Maybe I could help." Liz shook her head.

"No, it's something Lils and James said, but she won't tell me."

Sirius nodded knowingly. "Then it's probably about you. Or me. Or both of us." Liz looked at him questioningly. "I tried to get James to tell me what he was saying to her. He said it was a secret operation."

"And?" Liz asked.

"And... then he fell asleep."

"Oh." Liz shrugged. "Well, maybe I can worm it out of him. She stepped around Sirius and sat on James's bed. "James," she said. "JAMES. Get up." He continued to snore. Liz rolled her eyes. She leaned over and took his wand from the table next to his bed. She lit it and jabbed it towards his face. He jerked up and looked around.

"Whosere... what?" He fell back and groaned. "Liz. I was sleeping!" She rolled her eyes again.

"Tell me all about your secret operation," Liz ordered.

"No," he said stubbornly. "Now, if you don't mind, Liz, I'm going to sleep. The sleep YOU so rudely woke me up from. Hmph." And he turned over and began to snore again.

Liz glanced at Sirius. "How can you sleep with this noise?" Sirius shrugged. "Well, if it ever gets too loud, I would share." Sirius grinned. "Not like that! I meant... it doesn't matter." Sirius laughed.

"I was only thinking that sharing is caring," he said innocently. Liz stood up.

"Sure you were," she muttered. "Night, Sirius."

"See you in the morning, Liz." She smiled and tiptoed out of the room. Sirius leaned back and watched her silhouette disappear as she shut the door of her room.

"Rise and shine, ladies!" James pounced into the room and pulled off the covers from Liz's bed. She tugged them back and over her head.

"You know I almost never willingly wake up before ten," she grumbled. Lily sat up and smiled at James. She was much more good-natured than Liz in the morning.

"Almost?" she asked, feigning casualness. Liz threw a pillow at her with her eyes still tightly shut.

"Not to be discussed now, Lils." James narrowed his eyes.

"Should I be scared?" he asked. Lily laughed.

"No, it's nothing," she replied. "Just a little something Liz said a while back." James motioned to Sirius, who had emerged from James's room. He yawned and rubbed his eyes.

"Padfoot, go get a shirt," James sighed.

"No," Sirius said stubbornly, "I like being shirtless." At this, Liz shot up. She looked around the room excitedly. Sirius nodded at Liz. "You're up early, I see. Much earlier than usual. Special occasion?" How would he know how early Liz normally wakes up, Lily wondered.

"Yeah, I just want to, er, enjoy the last few days of summer?" Liz said breathlessly.

"Ohhhhh," James said slowly, "now I get the almost."

Lily laughed. "Yes, you do get it now."

"So... what are we doing today?" Liz asked brightly. Her cheeks had blushed dark red.

Sirius looked at Lily and James and Liz. "Did I miss something? Something with you..."

"You're almost as bad as Liz," James said, "it's September first."

Liz sank back to her bed. "That's right," she said, "I almost forgot. Hogwarts."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

A/N: Just so you know, I really don't like Peter Pettigrew, so he does not exist in my story. The only Marauders are James, Sirius, and Remus. Again, thanks Kat!! Please read and review!!

"JAMES POTTER, IF YOU DON'T HURRY UP WE ARE GOING TO MISS THE TRAIN!" Liz shrieked up the stairs at her brother. Lily and Sirius were standing next to her. The Hogwarts Express was leaving in ten minutes, and James was still upstairs. "What is taking you so long?" Liz said exasperatedly.

James, meanwhile, was frowning into the mirror. He looked forlornly at the pink hairbrush laying on the counter of the bathroom. He had tried to brush his hair to impress Lily. Instead of looking fabulous in its usual messy glory, James's hair now resembled a sad black poodle. He shook his head and glanced at his reflection one more time. He grabbed the brush and ran down the stairs, pulling his trunk behind him.

As James descended the stairs noisily, Lily gaped at him. She pointed at the brush with a shocked expression. "You actually brushed your hair?" she asked in awe.

"More like attempted to," Sirius sniggered quietly Liz sighed and shook her head.

"Come here and let me fix it," she said. James bent down in front of Liz. She stared at his head for a second and then ruffled it. "There," she said pleasantly, smiling at James's messy hair, "much better."

On the train, Liz was sitting with James and Sirius, who had been rejoined by their other best friend, Remus Lupin. Liz was waiting impatiently for Lily to return from her prefect's meeting. She was horribly bored, since she had eaten the supply of candy she had brought within the first twenty minutes of the train ride.

The glass door slid open to reveal a short redheaded figure. "Lily!" Liz cried. Lily said hello to everyone and walked past James to sit next to Liz. As she passed James, he slipped her a tightly folded piece of paper. Liz looked between James and Lily suspiciously. "What did you just give her?" Liz asked her brother.

"Nothing," James and Lily replied a little to quickly. Liz thought for a moment.

"Are you secretly a drug dealer?" Liz asked loudly. Lily glanced at James and then pinched Liz.

"Of course not!" Lily said. Of all the things Liz could possibly come up with with that imagination of hers, Lily thought. "You know I don't do drugs."

Liz shook her head and smiled slightly. "I meant James. I saw him hand you something."

"Liz," James said, "it was a little piece of paper. With writing on it." Liz rolled her eyes.

"No kidding," she said sarcastically.

"It's about their secret operation, I bet," Sirius stage-whispered to Liz. Liz nodded.

I'm going to find out what they're up to, Liz thought decidedly, Their secret operation won't be secret much longer. Liz bit her lip. James leaned away from her warily.

"She's thinking something sinister," James said. He looked at his sister. Lily gave him a questioning look. "She's biting her lip," he explained, "and she always does that when she's plotting something." Sirius nodded wisely. Liz rolled her eyes.

Lily turned to James. "I should be scared, shouldn't I?"James raised his eyebrows and nodded exaggeratedly.

"Learn to sleep with your eyes open," he advised. Lily had a look of terror on her face.

"Oh, come on," Sirius said, "she's not that bad. I want to know the secret too!" James and Lily exchanged hopeful looks.

Liz leaned back in her seat. "_Thank_ you, Sirius. And I saw that, you two." James grimaced at Lily.

"Definitely sleeping with my eyes open tonight," Lily said.

Later that night, Liz was struggling to pull her overflowing trunk to Lily's dorm. Lily sat on her bed with her arms crossed, a look of amusement on her face. "Remind me again why you get to stay in the fifth year dorm?" Lily asked.

"Because," Liz huffed, "I am special."

"You are certainly special," Lily agreed. "But really, why?" Liz stood up straight.

"I traded with the girl who was supposed to be over there. Blair Something. But aren't you happy I'm here? Now we can have constant sleepovers!"

Lily smiled widely. "I know. First-Day-of-School sleepover? Tonight?"

"I'll get plenty of chocolate," Liz said. "Oh, then I need to find James. I'll be back later. See you." Liz walked away and skipped up the stairs to the fifth year boys' dormitory.

"James?" she called, "Are you in here?" She opened the door without waiting for an answer. Inside, James was sitting on his bed, reading. Sirius was standing in front of his trunk, once again without a shirt. He turned around and, noticing Liz, screamed. Liz smirked. "You scream like a little girl. And come on, it's not like I haven't seen you shirtless before." Remus looked between Liz and Sirius.

"Later," Sirius said to him.

"Anyway... James, where's the chocolate Dad- Oh, my God, why are you reading?" She rushed over to her brother's bed. "You never read. Ever. Are you feeling all right?" James laughed.

"Relax, Liz. The chocolate's in my trunk." Liz glared at Remus, as if blaming him for her brother's sudden interest in books. She kneeled in front of James's trunk, letting her long, dark brown hair cover her face. She pulled out several bars of chocolate and noticed a piece of paper with 'Lily' written on it in small letters Glancing up at James, she hid the paper between two large Hershey bars. Quickly, she returned to her dorm, where Lily was waiting.

"Did you get the chocolate?" Lily asked eagerly.

"Yeah, I, er, just have to go to the bathroom. I'll be right back." Liz dropped the chocolate on her bed and locked herself in the bathroom. She quietly unfolded the note and read it. It said:

_Lily,_

_Watermelon definitely likes Lady Watermelon, but not sure if he would go out with her. I suggest jealousy. You have to convince Lady Watermelon to get a replacement Watermelon, for now. I will do the rest. Talk to her ASAP._

_James._

So that's what was going on, Liz mused. Maybe it's something about a watermelon-eating contest? Liz shrugged and stuffed the note in her pocket.

"So it doesn't mention us? Just these Watermelon people?" Sirius asked.

"Yeah. Not one word about anyone I know," Liz said. She and Sirius were huddled together in the Gryffindor common room, trying to decipher James and Lily's note. "Oh! I know!" Liz said suddenly, "Code names. They are talking about us, but in code names."

"Yeah," Sirius said slowly, "that makes sense. I was telling James about how much I love watermelon."

"And Lily was acting all strange and unLily-like." The two looked at each other carefully.

"I say," Sirius said softly, "we need our own secret plot. Now that we've figured out theirs."

"I agree," Liz said, "but what are we plotting? How about..." She stood on her toes and whispered her idea into Sirius's ear. He grinned wickedly.

"I like it," Sirius decided. They looked at each other again, and both broke into an evil smile.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Lily sat on her bed and glanced at her watch. She looked at Liz, who was sleeping peacefully despite the fact that it was well past lunchtime. "Liz," Lily said. Liz didn't move. Lily got up and opened the door for James. "She's not going to hear us," Lily said. James walked closer to his sister's sleeping form and waved his hand in front of her face. She mumbled something incoherent and rolled over so her back was facing Lily and James.

"Yep, definitely passed out," he said. James sat on the edge of Liz's bed next to Lily. "So... right. We were plotting something. Is there anyone she could potentially like?"

Lily shook her head. "No. And she's not keeping anything secret, either."

"Are you sure?" James asked, "Liz learned to lie from the masters."

"I don't think so. She's been talking in her sleep, as usual, and it's always Sirius this, and Sirius that." At Sirius's name, Liz opened her eyes blearily. She quickly shut them and pretended to sleep again. Maybe I can hear about their plot, she thought.

"Huh," James said thoughtfully. "What about... oh, I dunno. Who else is there?" Lily shrugged. "Somehow, I think we might need a new idea. Liz isn't going to go for the jealousy idea." James nodded.

"Alright." Liz could then tell it was safe to pretend to wake up. She rolled over again and smiled at James.

"Good morning," she said sleepily. Lily laughed.

"You missed morning, Liz. It's 3 PM." Liz looked at the clock. A whole day I could have been with Sirius wasted, she thought sadly.

"Oh." James stood up.

"I, er, think I'll go now, and let you two ladies chat." He looked pointedly at Lily and fake-coughed. Lily glared at him.

"What was that all about?" Liz asked. Her eyes were still half-shut.

"Never mind," Lily said, "he's just being weird." Liz nodded.

"You should see him when he's drunk."

~*~

Liz sat next to Sirius on the floor of the common room. "Now, as soon as he comes, you know-" Liz was interrupted by the sound of James clattering into the room. Liz and Sirius jumped up. As soon as Sirius saw James, he put his arms around Liz. James's eyes brightened.

"Did it work?" he asked excitedly. Liz looked up hopefully at Sirius.

"Did what work?" she asked casually.

James continued excitedly, "Me and Lily's plot. To get you two together. Did it work? Are you a couple now?" Sirius grinned.

"I knew it! We knew you two were plotting something!" Liz said happily. She didn't even care that Lily and James's plot had been discovered; she was just thrilled that Sirius was still hugging her.

James looked at his feet and turned bright red. "Oh. Oops." At this point, Lily walked into the room to see Liz and Sirius standing very close together, grinning. She looked at James and saw him guiltily avoiding her eyes. Lily's eyes narrowed.

"What did you do now?" she said angrily.

James said, "I, er, might have, um, accidentally told them about our plot?" Lily gave him a glare that could've sent anyone from the room screaming in horror. Which is exactly what James did.

~*~

After Lily chased James out of the room, Liz and Sirius suddenly became conscious of how close they were standing. Liz cleared her throat. "This has been sufficiently awkward..." she said to herself.

Sirius gazed at her carefully. "You know," he said slowly, "that's not such a bad idea." Liz looked at him warily.

"What's not such a bad idea?"

Sirius stared at her. "This."

And then he kissed her.

A/N: Sorry it's so short, but I wanted the kiss to end the chapter. Please Review! As always, thanks Kat.


	4. Chapter 4

_Sirius gazed at her carefully. "You know," he said slowly, "that's not such a bad idea." Liz looked at him warily._

"_What's not such a bad idea?"_

_Sirius stared at her. "This."_

_And then he kissed her._

_~*~_

Liz's eyes shut. She could not believe what was happening. I am kissing Sirius Black, she thought. Liz opened her eyes again to a very close view of Sirius. This is really happening, she thought, I'm not dreaming.

Sirius, on the other hand, had very different thoughts. He thought that James was going to kill him for snogging his little sister. He wondered how Liz had learned to kiss so well. He also wished he had some chocolate at that very moment, but then remembered that in order to eat the chocolate, he would have to stop kissing Liz, and he definitely did not want to do that. So Sirius forgot the chocolate for now.

A few minutes later, they surfaced. Sirius gaped openly at Liz. "I, er..." He was speechless. "I hope you don't mind, I was just, er... Well, actually, I don't know what I was doing, really, just-" Liz silenced him with a kiss.

~*~

Lily stood in doorway of James's dorm with her arms crossed. James sat on his bed and looked at the floor. "I guess our brilliant plot wasn't so brilliant after all," James said sadly. "I ruined them." And I ruined any chance I had with Lily, he thought.

Lily shook her head. "It's okay. If they're meant to be, then no plot of ours is going to make any difference."

"So... it's back to hating me then, is it, Lily?"

"Don't push your luck, Potter. I never stopped hating you. I just put my hatred aside and focused on more important matters." She left the room before she could see James's crushed expression.

~*~

Lily felt miserable for the next few days. She hated school. She hated her life. But most of all, she hated James Potter. Or at least she thought she did. James Potter was the cause of all her problems. And not because of his constant annoyance. She hated James for making her feel guilty. As much as Lily hated to admit it, she felt guilty for being so mean to James.

No, she thought, I'm not doing this. I'm not caring about Potter. I won't do it. Why do I have any reason to be nice to him? It's not like he's ever done anything that shows he cares about me. Potter is my enemy. My lifelong enemy. We will never be anything besides that. Enemies.

~*~

Lily was curled up in the common room, reading a book. Liz was laying with her head on Sirius's chest. Every minute or so, Liz would smile for what seemed like no reason at all. When Sirius asked her why she was smiling, she would reply that it was just a nice day, or she had remembered something funny. Lily, however, knew better. Lily knew she was smiling because of Sirius. And as tactless as Liz seemed, she knew enough not to say that.

"Liz, I have a question," Sirius said. Liz nodded.

"Uh-huh? What is it?"

"Does this mean we're like, going out now?" Liz rolled over and looked at him.

"I guess," she shrugged. "Okay?"

Sirius raised his eyebrows. "Fine with me." Liz smiled.

"Good." Lily looked up from her book. She stared at Liz and Sirius.

"How are you two so casual?" she demanded. Liz sat up and crossed her legs.

"Well," she began. "We've sort of been, well, basically dating for a week. We just haven't agreed out loud until now."

Lily smiled tightly. "Thanks, Liz," she said sarcastically. "That just makes it all so much clearer."

"You're welcome," Liz said sincerely. She glanced at Sirius and he grinned. She motioned towards Lily and he nodded. Sirius sat up and they started kissing. Lily noticed and left the room, muttering about how disgusting they were. On her way back to the girls' dorm, she bumped into James.

"Sorry," he said quickly, "Do you know where Liz-" Lily pointed to the common room over her shoulder and brushed past him. He nodded thanks and continued towards the common room.

James stepped into the common room and saw Liz tightly entwined with someone. He coughed loudly. Liz sighed and broke away. She turned around. "What, James?" Sirius sat up and smiled brightly at James.

"Hey, Prongs," he said, "what's up?" James crossed his arms and leaned against the doorway.

"So that's how it is." Sirius nodded.

"Yeah, mate. That's how it is." Liz looked at Sirius.

"Give me a minute," she said to him. Liz stood up and pulled James by the arm into the hallway. "What is your problem now?" she whispered.

James spluttered, "You-you and him! Him and y-you! Together! When did this happen?"

"Yes, we're together. It happened about a week ago. Anything else?"

"Yes, there is something else," James said firmly, "You know I don't want you to be with people like that! You've seen his exes-"

Liz laughed. "He's your best friend! If you didn't want us together, what about your plot then? Hm? Just a little experiment? Nothing real?"

"I thought I did, but, now... look, Liz, just promise me you'll tell me everything that goes on."

Liz raised his eyebrows skeptically. "Everything?" James narrowed his eyes.

"No, not _everything_. Just, you know, within reason."

Liz rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, sure. Now can I go?" James laughed and ruffled her hair. They walked back into the common room. Sirius nodded slowly. Liz stood in between him and James.

"Everything cool?" Sirius asked. Liz smiled and nodded.

"Everything's wonderful." James smiled ruefully. He turned to leave.

"I'll leave you two lovebirds to whatever it is you're doing." Liz turned bright red. As he was almost out the door, James remembered something. "Oh, and Padfoot?" He motioned for Sirius to come closer. Sirius looked at him questioningly. Quietly, so only Sirius could hear him, he said, "You hurt her, you die. Remember that."


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I just wanted to say a few things... (And then I'll get to the story). The 'so that's how it is' line is not mine, it's borrowed from (I like to say inspired by) the movie Across the Universe (one of my favorite movies ever, by the way). And, I just realized, all the way back in chapter 1, I said drying instead of trying somewhere. I'm sure you could have figured it out, but being a perfectionist, and also slightly anal, I have to clarify that little point. Also, for those of you who may be looking for James/Lily stuff, they come later. Liz and Sirius are a little more impatient, and they're my favorite couple, well, pretty much ever, so I wanted to get them together first. And I guess I do have to listen to J.K.'s story a little bit... Wow, this is a really long note, I'm just rambling, so I'll shut up now. Anyway, as usual, please read and review, and thanks Kat!!!

"Hey, Prongs?" Sirius called. James was once again reading. James looked up.

"Yeah?"

Sirius wasn't quite sure how to continue without James getting angry, and since his temper could be worse than Lily's, he spoke cautiously. "About your, er, declaration the other day..." James put down his book.

"Do you have a problem with that?" he asked icily. Sirius shook his head.

"No, no. I just wanted to, er, let you know..." Wow, this is awkward, he thought. James looked out the doorway of their dorm room at Liz. She was doing her homework. She kept looking out the window sadly, then back and forth across the common room, as if she was waiting for something. James's voice softened.

"I just don't want her to be another one of them, you know?" he gestured towards Sirius's bed thoughtfully. Sirius nodded.

"She won't, though," Sirius said softly, "Liz is special. I have a feeling she's different than everyone else." James nodded wordlessly. The two of them stared at Liz through the doorway. They both knew at that moment, watching the rain hit the window outside, that she was certainly special to both of them.

~*~

Lily laid on her bed with her head hanging off the edge. Liz was sitting on the floor, sucking on a lollipop and painting her toenails bright red. "Why do I care so much about stupid James Potter?" Lily was talking to herself, but Liz, of course, answered her anyway.

"Because you know you really like him, and you're afraid to admit it to yourself because then you would be going against everything you've ever said about James and also you're scared of him being right about you all this time and you can't stand that he was right," Liz said in one breath. She looked up at Lily expectantly. Lily glared at her.

"Since when did you become the relationship expert?" she muttered.

Liz shrugged. "I dunno?"

"Well, anyway, you're wrong," Lily said decidedly, "I do _not_ like him. Potter is an inconvenient part of my life. I don't care if he's your favorite, best older brother in the whole world. Potter and I are, and always will be, enemies." Liz focused on her lollipop.

"I don't think so, Lily. I think I'm right. Sirius agrees with me, too."

Lily rolled over and said sarcastically, "Oh, well if Sirius agrees, then you must be right! Who would ever doubt Sirius Black and Liz Potter?"

"No one," Liz said stubbornly, "because we're always right. But you, my impertinent friend, are disagreeing with me."

"First, you are _not_ always right."

"Okay, maybe not _every_ time. 9 out of 10 times we are right, though."

"Fine. And second, where did you learn such a big word like impertinent?" Liz shrugged again.

"You seriously underestimate me. I am perfectly brilliant, thank you very much." Lily sighed and let her eyes close.

"I forgot, you astound me every day with random acts of intelligence." Liz whacked Lily over the head with her lollipop.

"Stop being so sarcastic! And look, you just made me waste a perfectly good lollipop!"

"Just go find some chocolate or something. You'll get over it." Liz thought about that for a moment and then brightened instantly.

"I'll go find Sirius!" she said happily.

Lily was confused. "What does Sirius have to do with chocolate or lollipops? Or wait, let me guess, he would share his chocolate with you?" Liz stood up and grinned.

"Yes, but not in the way you might think." Lily sighed.

"Do I want to know?" Liz stuck her tongue out at Lily.

"Do the words chocolate kiss mean anything to you? And not the Hershey kind, either."

Lily sat back and thought it over. "I don't- wait, do you mean you eat chocolate while kissing? That's disgusting!"

"You're just saying that cause you've never tried it. Trust me, the chocolate kiss is quite possibly the best invention ever."

"I'll take your word for it," Lily said hurriedly. Mental pictures were floating around in her head that were not at all pretty.

"I'll see you later, then," Liz said. She paused in front of the doorway. Lily waved her away distractedly. She skipped away happily to the boys' dorm, leaving Lily to her thoughts.

~*~

Lily stood in the common room door an hour later. She was watching Liz and Sirius with a look that was a cross between amusement and disgust on her face. A voice came from behind her. "They're so adorable it's sickening, isn't it?" Lily jumped and turned around.

James stood behind her, smirking. "Oh, it's you, Potter," she muttered, "I didn't realize."

"How could you not recognize my beautiful face?" he asked cockily. Lily glared at him.

"Okay, okay, fine. Sorry. I didn't mean that. Well, wait, yeah I did, but sorry anyway." He ran his hand through his black hair, messing it up even more than it already was. Lily replied with another withering glare. James's eyes softened. "Sorry. Really." Even Lily couldn't help but return his breathtaking smile.

"Listen, Potter. I just wanted to say..." Lily began. James looked up from the floor.

"What?" he asked, "Another insult?" Lily snorted.

"Not exactly. I _was_ going to say I'm sorry. For, you know, being so mean? Before?" James nodded forlornly.

"Apology accepted. And I have a request, if it's okay...?" he let the question hang.

"What now, Potter?" Lily groaned. She expected yet another request for a date, or a marriage proposal, both of which James had been know to do in the past.

"Can we at least try to be friends?" he asked softly. Lily looked at the ceiling and then to her toes.

"I... I, er, I don't see why not." she said. Wait, Lily thought, I just agreed to be friends with James Potter, didn't I. Yes, I did. Idiot Lily! Idiot, idiot, idiot!

James grinned. "Cool. See you later, then." He walked away, still messing up his hair as he went.

~*~


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Please review!! It says people read but don't review so just review please! One little review... It won't kill you!! As usual, thanks Kat. REMEMBER TO REVIEW OR I WON'T UPDATE SOON!

Chapter 6

"Hey, Lily," James said as he walked past Lily and Liz, who was for once without Sirius. Lily smiled and waved. As soon as James left, Liz began to speak very fast.

"What are you doing? I thought you hated him! Was I right? Do you like him? Did you finally say yes? What happened? What did I miss? What is going on?" Lily laughed.

"Breathe, Liz," she said, "We're just friends. That's all."

"That's what they all say," Liz muttered. "I give you a week."

"A week for what?"

"A week until you two either get together or start screaming at each other again," Liz replied, as if it was obvious.

"I'm not going out with him!" Lily said forcefully. "I repeat, we are just _friends_."

"No need to get so touchy. I'm only expressing my opinion." Lily rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"Some opinion," Lily said.

"So I'm a very opinionated person. Is that such a crime?"

"Why don't you go do something else besides bother me?"

"Because, "Liz grinned, "I like annoying you. It's fun. James agrees with me. And before you say anything else, yes, we are always right." Lily sighed.

She smiled with her lips tight. "I'm sure you are." Liz smiled and leaned back in her chair. I'm not going to fall for Potter- I mean, er, James, Lily thought. But deep in her heart, she knew she was wrong. She could tell from the way her whole day brightened when she talked to him. The way her heart fluttered a bit when he walked into the room. The only question was how long she could keep it secret from Liz.

~*~

A/N: FAST FORWARD TO THE END OF THE YEAR

~*~

James pulled a hand through his hair and stared at the castle. "Another year gone," he sighed, "and to think we'll be graduating in two years!"

"Three for me!" Liz reminded him.

"Oh," he said, I forgot about you." Liz pouted. Sirius smiled and kissed her cheek.

"Don't worry, Liz," he said, "no one could ever really forget about you." She smiled and stood on her toes to kiss him. James groaned.

"Oh, God, ew," he said, shaking his head. He began to walk away with a grimace on his face. "When you're finished, come find me and Lily. She needed you for something, Liz, I just remembered." Liz ignored him.

A few minutes later, Liz and Sirius came into the compartment of the train where Lily and James were sitting. Lily looked up from her book. "Hey. Where were you?" Liz smiled serenely. "Liz, please." She glanced towards Sirius and then James wordlessly. Liz sat down next to Lily.

"Alright, you two," she ordered, "leave. Lils and I need some time for girl talk." James rolled his eyes and got up Sirius kissed Liz one more time and followed James out the door. Liz turned to Lily, smiling pleasantly. "Well. I give you about... six minutes before they come back in here. What's up?"

Lily struggled with her words. "I, er, think, I might, well, you know..."

"No, I don't know," Liz said impatiently.

"Yes, you do. I just, er... you were right," Lily muttered. Liz smiled and raised her eyebrows.

"I usually am," she said wryly, "but what am I right about this time?" Lily fought to keep herself from blushing.

"I think I like James!" she blurted out. Liz grinned wickedly.

"Since when?" Liz demanded. "And please, can I say I told you so?"

"Since a while ago, and no you may not. But you are missing the point. _What do I do?_"

Liz rolled her eyes and gave Lily an I-can't-believe-you're-really-asking-me-that look. "If you ask me, it's fairly obvious. He's been in love with you forever. Next time he asks you out, just say yes! Simple!"

"That's the problem," Lily said, "he stopped asking. We're friends now, and friends don't ask friends out." Liz nodded.

"Now I see the problem. But lucky for you, I have the solution." She paused dramatically. Lily looked at her, waiting.

Liz just smiled. "And I will tell you in 3...2...1!" Right on cue, Sirius and James burst through the door. "Alright, Liz, that's enough girl talk," James said. Liz stood up and pushed him out the door with much effort. Sirius sighed dejectedly.

"Have you all forgotten about me?" he asked. Liz laughed and kissed him softly.

"I could never forget about you," she assured him. He smiled and kissed her back.

"Ahem," Lily said pointedly. Liz broke away from Sirius and blushed. "Your solution?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"Right," Liz said quickly. She pointed at Sirius.

"That's it?" Lily asked heatedly, "_he_ is your brilliant solution?" Liz nodded and smiled hopefully.

"Lils, _he_ is James's best friend. You don't have to do anything. Sirius and I tell him to ask you out again, or dare him, or something like that, and you just say the word 'yes'. It's not that hard." Sirius glanced at Lily.

"So I take it she finally admitted it, then?" he asked.

"Yeah," Liz said. Lily sunk down in her seat.

"Did everyone know about my feelings besides me?" she muttered. Liz and Sirius nodded. Lily smiled sarcastically. "Great. Just great."

~*~

"So you two'll come over as soon as you get home, right?" Liz asked Lily and Sirius.

"I'm just dropping my stuff off at home and letting my parents know I'm alive," Sirius promised. Lily nodded.

"As soon as I can," she said.

Liz smiled. She kissed Sirius, hugged Lily, and turned to James. "Come on," she said happily to James. "Let's go."

As soon as they were home, Liz dropped her trunk in her room. Se looked around and smiled to herself. Her room showed no signs that there had been no one there since Christmas. Clothes were strewn around the floor. Liz's closet was filled with tons of clothes and shoes, but there were even more empty hangers and shoe boxes. The huge white canopy bed was unmade. The window was wide open, and a light breeze blew in through it.

James appeared in the doorway and ran a hand through his hair. He made Liz jump as he leaned next to her on the windowsill. "You scared me," she muttered. He rolled his eyes. "Oh, and I have to tell you something."

"Yeah?"

"Ask Lily out? Tonight? I dare you," she added on. James sighed. He could never refuse a dare.

"I hate you, but fine," James muttered. He sucked in his breath and began to figure out how he was going to ask Lily out. Never been a problem before, he thought. Liz smiled at him as he disappeared out the door.

~*~

Lily walked into her house carefully. "I'm back!" she called. Her sister Petunia descended the spiral staircase with a sour look on her bony face.

"Oh, joy," she said nastily, "Lily's home." Lily's smile faded. I try to be nice, she thought. She forced herself to smile again. "Where's Mum and Dad?" Lily asked conversationally.

"Out somewhere, I don't know," Petunia drawled.

"Well, if they aren't home, I'm going over to Liz's. I'll see you." Lily turned around and shut the door without so much as a backward glance.

~*~

Sirius opened the front door of his house, letting a bit of light into the otherwise empty black house. Fitting, he thought wryly, the Blacks live in a black house.

He peered around the hallways and didn't see anyone. He pulled his trunk up to his room, letting it clunk against each and every stair along the way.

Sirius smiled when he entered his room. The Gryffindor banners had survived the spring. He began to decorate his room with photos from the year. He had to start annoying his family as soon as he could. A voice came from behind him.

"Who's this?" Sirius whipped around quickly. His little brother was standing behind him, holding a picture of him and Liz at Christmas. He grabbed the photo out of Regulus's hand.

"Liz," he muttered. He hung another Gryffindor banner directly above his bed.

"Liz Potter? I heard you were dating her." Sirius turned around again.

"Yeah, I am. What's it to you?" Regulus shrugged casually.

"Doesn't matter. She's pretty hot, for a mudblood-lover," he sneered.

"Don't talk about her like that," Sirius snapped. He brushed past his brother and slammed the door.

Sirius stomped down the stairs and practically ran to the front door. His hand on the doorknob, he was stopped by his mother's shrill voice. "Just where do you think you're going?" she said, no trace of niceness in her voice. Sirius sighed and turned around.

"I'm going to a friend's," he said.

"I hope this friend is pureblood," she responded icily. Sirius glared at her.

"Not that it matters at all because you couldn't stop me, but they are." His mother smiled for once, surprised.

"Well, who are these friends of yours?"

"Liz and James Potter," Sirius said shortly, "Bye." He tugged the door open and slammed it shut. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, fuming. What a way to say hello, he thought angrily.

~*~


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: As a little side note, the next year (5th / 4th) will be fairly short, the long year is the seventh year for Lily, James, and Sirius, and then Liz's seventh year. As always, read, review, thanks Kat, etc.

Chapter 7

The gate to the Potters' house flew open and slammed shut. Liz jumped at the sound and turned to see what it was. She had been tanning by the pool, beginning summer as early as possible. She saw Sirius by the gate and stood up quickly, adjusting her polka-dot bikini top. Barefoot, she ran to Sirius and kissed him before James even noticed she had gotten up.

Sirius smiled. Liz studied his face with a frown. "Something's wrong," she said, "you're acting weird." James, who had come over to say hello to his best friend, looked between Liz and Sirius. He wondered how she could tell so quickly that something had happened.

"No, it's just my mother being a bitch again," Sirius muttered, "It's no big deal." Liz's eyes widened.

"If you hate your mother that much, you know you could always come live with us,"she said. James nodded behind her. Sirius smiled.

"Thanks, guys." At that moment, Lily burst through the gate, wearing only a black bikini top and jean shorts. James looked Lily up and down, then looked at Liz.

"You match," he remarked. Lily exchanged a smile with Liz.

"No, James," she explained patiently, "Liz is wearing white shorts and a polka dot bathing suit. Mine is black." James looked confused.

"It's okay, Prongs," Sirius said, "I don't get it either. Must be a girl thing." Liz smirked at Lily.

"Speaking of girl things," Liz said loudly, "I need to talk to Lily. Alone. More girl talk." James grumbled and muttered to himself that there was no need for all these secrets. Lily glared at him until he got the idea and left, not wanting to be subjected to her infamous temper. Lily then turned to glare at Sirius.

"What?" he said quickly, "it's not like I don't know exactly what Liz is going to tell you!"

"You told him? Everything?" Lily exclaimed. Liz shrugged helplessly.

"Sorry! But it doesn't matter. I just wanted to tell you that James is going to ask you out again later. I dared him, so..."

"All you have to do is say yes," Sirius interjected. Lily crossed her arms.

"Yeah, yeah," she grumbled, "I know. Blah, blah, blah."

~*~

A few hours later, James still hadn't said much of anything to Lily. He remained mostly silent, speaking only when someone asked him a question. Liz noticed that he looked a bit green. By 10 'o clock that night, he marched decidedly up to Lily. "Oh, God," Liz whispered to Sirius, "he's going to do it. I can't look." She hid her face behind her hands. Sirius laughed and pulled her up out of the pool by one hand.

"We should give them some privacy," he said quietly. Liz raised her eyebrows.

"Who would've thought," she murmured, "that Sirius Black would be thoughtful." She shrugged and, with one last glance at James and Lily, followed Sirius up the stairs.

Meanwhile, James was fighting to say something. "Hi, Lily," he said finally. Good start, he thought, nothing too strong. Just casuality. He didn't notice that 'casuality' was not actually a word. Lily smiled in return, her toes dragging along the warm water. "Listen, I was wondering..." Lily's heart skipped a beat. He was going to ask her. Should she say yes instantly? No, better play it cool.

"Yeah?" she said. Perfect, sounds really perfect. No one would ever guess that I was talking to the hottest guy... no. Must not get carried away here. It's James Potter. Oh, but it's James effing Potter! Lils, shut up. Now.

James was unaware of Lily's internal battle between her mind and her heart. He focused on the words he was about to say. "Lily... would you, maybe, er, might possibly consider, erm, wanting to, er, gooutwitmesometimelater?" There, James thought, I did it. I asked her. Lily gaped at him.

"What was that?" Lily had absolutely no clue what he had said. "I didn't quite catch that." Dammit, James, he thought, it doesn't count if she can't understand you. He cleared his throat.

"I was wondering if you would maybe want to, er, go..." his voice trailed off so Lily couldn't hear anything else.

"James," Lily laughed softly, "just say it. What is it? You were wondering if...?" She waited for him to finish the thought. He didn't. "Come on," she said soothingly, "you can say it. Go on."

~*~

Up in Liz's room, Liz and Sirius were looking through the window. They saw James and Lily, sitting noticeably apart, speaking with long pauses between each sentence. "What's taking them so long?" Sirius muttered, "he should have asked her by now." Liz spun around to look at him.

"You don't think... you don't think she said no, do you?" Liz asked carefully.

"No," Sirius said, trying to lighten the mood, "Prongs would have drowned himself already if she said no." Liz laughed nervously and kissed him. All thoughts of Lily and James were momentarily forgotten.

~*~

James struggled to say what he wanted clearly. "Lily. Would you. Want to, er, go out with me sometime?" He flushed bright red and tacked a hopeful smile on the end. Lily stared at him, his purposely-messy black hair, his hazel eyes obscured by glasses, his athletic body, his stunning smile. This is what we've been waiting for, Lily thought, this is the moment I've been waiting for since February.

"I..." she began. Now Lily understood why he had been so tongue-tied earlier. "Ye-I..." Lily frowned and glanced up at the house. "I can't do this," she muttered. Lily pushed herself up and walked swiftly into the house, leaving James alone. Rejected, once again, by the girl he loved most.

~*~

Lily banged open the door of Liz's room. "Sirius. Out." She was furious with herself. Why couldn't she be a normal, happy person? Why did she have to take every opportunity and destroy her chances? What was wrong with her? Sirius stood up with one last worried glance at Liz and shut the door behind him. Lily sat on the floor next to Liz and leaned her head back against the bed.

"Are... are you okay? What happened?" Liz asked.

Lily sighed. "I messed up, Liz. I messed up everything."


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: One other little futuristic side note: the story is going to stray slightly away from J.K. Rowling's story. In the real Harry Potter, Sirius has no wife or girlfriend. I don't want him and Liz to break up, or for her to die, so for now, I'm deciding screw the real story. I could change my mind if I feel like writing a death scene though... Please read, review! (Thanks, Kat).

Chapter 8

~*~

"_Are... are you okay? What happened?" Liz asked._

_Lily sighed. "I messed up, Liz. I messed up everything."_

_~*~_

Liz could do nothing but stare helplessly as Lily began to cry. "I'm such a horrible person!" Lily wailed. Liz hugged her and handed her a tissue.

"Don't say that," Liz consoled her, "you aren't a horrible person." Lily opened her mouth to disagree, but Liz continued firmly, "Don't think I'm not mad at you for getting his hopes up and then dropping him in one second. But I know you didn't mean it." Lily looked up at Liz, her face red and puffy.

"I have to go make this up somehow, don't I?" she asked. Liz nodded. "Well, can I have some time to make myself look at least sort of okay?" she laughed weakly. Liz grinned and jumped up. She came back from her bathroom a minute later holding a fresh tissue box, Lily's favorite v-neck white t-shirt, three hairbrushes, and several different colors of lip gloss and eyeliner. Lily eyed the collection of make-up warily. "Am I that much of a wreck?" she wondered.

"Yes," Liz said simply.

"Oh, thanks a lot." But she still allowed Liz to make her beautiful. By one in the morning, Lily was looking much better. Her dark red hair was combed neatly, and her green, almond-shaped eyes stood out from the brown eyeliner Liz had skillfully applied. Lily looked at herself in Liz's huge, three-sided mirror. Liz held a picture she had of James next to Lily's face.

"You look good together!" Liz exclaimed. Lily's eyes filled up with happy tears. "Don't cry," Liz muttered, extracting the photo from Lily's vicelike grip. "You'll ruin your make-up. It took me forever to do that." Lily sniffed and laughed one more time.

"See you," she smiled. Lily disappeared out the door and down the hall.

~*~

_"Sirius. Out." ... Sirius stood up with one last worried glance at Liz and shut the door behind him. _

Sirius stared at the door for a moment, wondering if Lily was alright. He figured she was fine with Liz, but James was alone. He ran down the stairs and outside to the pool, where James was still siting. His lifeless eyes stared into the blue of the water. "Er, Prongs?" Sirius asked nervously. He edged around the gate.

"Why?" James wondered. "I thought... I thought she was really going to say yes this time." He wondered why it hurt so much. He had never been so discouraged whenever she refused before. Maybe... he thought, maybe I got so depressed because this time I actually had a shot. James looked up at Sirius. "Padfoot, maybe Lily's just... I don't know. She's like, got this whole idea about me, this whole 'Oh, I hate James Potter' thing, that she's afraid to let go of. She's gotten so used to hating me that she can't get her head around the idea that I'm maybe not so horrible. It's not me she can't stand, it's the idea of actually liking me." Sirius stared at him.

"That was really profound, mate," he said, shocked. James nodded and smiled to himself.

"Lily needs to see this side of me." He gestured to himself. "The mature, not an arse side. She thinks I'm just a bigheaded, conceited, stupid Quidditch-playing idiot."

"Well, you know what you have to do then, Prongs?" James just stared nervously. Sirius often gave the strangest ideas hen it came to girls. It was, after all, Sirius's idea to have James stand on the breakfast table in 3rd year and sing the Beatles' song "I Want to Hold Your Hand" to Lily. James definitely did not expect this. "You've just got to prove her wrong."

~*~

Lily stuck her head carefully in the door of James's room. "Er- James? Sirius?" Nobody answered. She flicked on the light. It only illuminated two beds and various clothes thrown on the floor, including a pair of boxers with rubber ducks that she sincerely hoped never to see again. Lily snapped the light off again and sighed. Where else could James be?

~*~

James stood up from the side of the pool and walked back to his room. He locked the door behind him, and looked out the window. The full moon shone through the wide open window. His eyes darted to the window. James quickly unlocked the door in case Sirius needed to come in, but left it shut. He climbed through the window and out to the roof. There was a section of the roof that was low and flat enough that he could easily sit on it, but it was only accessible though his or Liz's window. Liz thought it was the most romantic place in the house. You could see the sunset perfectly, and the roof was just big enough for two. Liz had brought several previous boyfriends up to the roof, because she was just the kind of person who shares her world with everyone. James, despite the romanticness of it, had never been up there with any of his many girlfriends. It was one of his favorite place in the world.

~*~

Lily walked across the hall and back to Liz's room in a huff. She slammed the door behind her and looked around expectantly for Liz. She was nowhere in sight. Fine, Lily thought angrily, leave me all alone. She then noticed the bright, white-yellow moon glowing luminescent through the sheer white curtains. She pushed the window open and carefully climbed through it. She stepped onto the roof, expecting the cold, black tile under her bare feet. Instead, she tread on someone's fingers. "James whipped around and tugged his hand out from under Lily's foot. "Oh!" she exclaimed, "Sorry! I didn't know you were right there."

"Yeah, 'cause you never step on my fingers on purpose," he muttered bitterly. Lily's shoulders drooped. So he was still annoyed about before, to say the least.

"Look, James-" James put a hand to his heart dramatically.

"James! Not Potter? Well, well, Evans, I am surprised." Lily glared at him, and he instantly regretted his words.

"I _was_ coming up here to apologize, but if that's how you're going to play it, fine. I can just as easily hate you as like you." Lily turned around and made to go inside, but James caught her wrist. "What now, Potter?" James stared at her with pure love in his hazel eyes.

"You were going to apologize?" he said softly. Lily nodded and fought back tears. She didn't understand how he could be so arrogant one minute, and yet make the butterflies in her stomach go wild the next. Lily nodded, unable to form words. James brushed a lock of hair back from Lily's face tenderly. Hesitantly, sweetly, he leaned in and softly kissed her mouth. Lily blushed and looked at her feet. She gave him a half-smile and kissed him back. In the middle of their kiss, they suddenly a heard two voices, softly, going "Yes!". They broke apart and looked to the window. Liz and Sirius were there, both with triumphant grins.

"Oh, go on, you two, don't let us ruin your moment," Liz said impatiently. Sirius laughed. "I told you we should give them some privacy," Sirius admonished in a playful tone. Liz rolled her eyes.

"You keep astounding me with all you thoughtfulness," Liz murmured. Sirius grinned and kissed her. The two disappeared from the window. Lily and James stared, slightly worried, into each other's eyes. James kissed her again, figuring it was better than any words he could come up with. Neither James nor Lily could imagine a more perfect moment.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: A few things to say: Last chapter I said hen instead of when somewhere, just know I do not randomly start talking about hens. Second, I don't want to sound like a baby, but I WANT MORE REVIEWS!!!!!!!! So far I only have one. And thanks, amburger, for that one and only review *glares at other nonreviewing readers*. Third, I want you all to know that I also am not stupid. I know that James and Lily don't really get together until 7th year, but for the purposes of my story, the summer between 5th and 6th year works so much better. Finally, as always, read, thanks Kat, and REVIEW!

Chapter 9

"Oh, but it was so amazing, Liz! He's just the best kisser in the world!" Lily gushed. She had been talking about James for seven minutes straight. Liz smirked at her best friend.

"You've already said that," Liz reminded her, "four times at last count." Lily blushed.

"But it's true! He is the best kisser ever!" Liz raised her eyebrows.

"I can think of a better kisser," she teased. Lily paid no attention to her. She just continued gushing about James's kissing abilities.

~*~

James, like Lily, could not get over what had just happened. He was planning out his future with Lily in vivid detail to Sirius, only because no one else would listen. "And then," James said dreamily, "after we graduate, me and Lily will get married and then we'll have a kid who looks just like me and we'll name him something cool, like Pina Colada, or Harry, or maybe Jameson, but that sort of sounds too much like James, and I hate when people name their child after themselves,-" He paused to take a breath. Sirius jumped in at the first opportunity.

"Prongs," Sirius said kindly. James looked up happily.

"Or what about Pina Colada Harry Potter? Cause I'm really starting to like the way that flows..." James continued breathlessly. Sirius cut him off exasperatedly.

"Prongs, mate, you sound like a six-year-old girl!" James blushed.

"Do I really... oh. I guess I do," he murmured.

Sirius laughed. "I'd say focus on getting through this summer first. Before you, er... mention this... Pina Colada Harry, is it? Before you mention that to Lily." James nodded quickly.

"Don't worry, Padfoot," he laughed, "I'm not _that_ much of an idiot." Sirius smiled.

"Sure you're not, mate," he said brightly. "Whatever you say."

~*~

In the morning, Liz was, shockingly, awake earlier than Lily. She quietly went into the boys' room, making sure she only woke up Sirius. He rubbed his eyes blearily and glanced at the clock. It was only 9:25. "You okay, Liz? It's kind of early for you to be up," he whispered. Liz shook her head and put a finger to her lips in a shushing gesture. She pulled Sirius by the arm out of the room.

"So, really, what's the occasion for being up so early? Did you miss my beautiful face?" he joked. Liz smiled.

"Yeah, I did... but no, I just kept having this nightmare..." she said quietly. Sirius put his arm around her shoulders.

"What was it?" Liz shook her head slowly to try to get rid of the image.

"I just keep seeing this little black-haired baby, with- with Lily's eyes. And he's like, laughing and cooing..." Sirius glanced at her, her face unreadable, even to him.

"That doesn't sound so bad," he said.

"It's not that. It's that this little baby... he's..." Liz whispered.

"What?" Sirius said. "What is it?"

"Be-behind his crib are the bodies of the three of you." Sirius hugged her again. She buried her face in her shoulder, and he got the strong coconut scent of her hair as it blew a bit in the wind.

"Shh... it's just a dream. It's not real." Liz looked up at him, and their faces were almost touching.

"It just seems so real though!" she cried. Sirius squeezed her tight once more, staring behind her to the backyard. Liz sniffed.

"Hey," he said gently, "you okay?" Liz wiped her eyes and nodded. She smiled sadly.

"I'm okay." Sirius smiled back. He kissed her softly, then harder. Her body relaxed slightly with his touch. Liz grinned through the kiss. Sirius always knew exactly how to make her feel better.

~*~

Lily woke up suddenly. She had been having the best dream. She had been dreaming about James and her, on a nice, private yacht. There had been no one else there besides the two of them. James had just made her a pina colada. She was wearing the most beautiful dress. It was a simple black strapless dress, with white, red, and pink roses covering the whole thing. Lily had been about to drink her pina colada when she woke up. Lily thought it was odd that her subconscious mind had conjured up such a romantic scene, when she typically abhorred anything romantic. She decided that it was her dream self, not her real self, that had come up with this, and therefore it was her dream self who liked the romance. Lily pondered this for forty-five minutes, before getting up and walking to the door. With her hand on the doorknob, Lily paused. She suddenly remembered that she now had to care about what she looked like. "Damn you, James," she whispered to herself. Lily carefully stuck her head out the door, careful not to let any of her bedraggled hair show. She checked for James, but saw only Sirius and Liz, laughing and walking hand in hand back to Liz's room. Lily watched as Liz stood on her toes to kiss Sirius one more time, then giggle as he blew her a kiss from the doorway of his and James's room.

Liz smiled to herself and opened the door, trying to make as little noise as possible. She gasped and cursed when she saw Lily. "Er, good morning, Lily. How-how long have you been awake?" Liz was still slightly scared from her dream, so she sounded nervous. Lily crossed her arms.

"Long enough. Have you been out all night?" she asked coolly. Liz crossed her arms and pursed her lips.

"No. I couldn't sleep, so I woke up Sirius about two hours ago," Liz said truthfully. Lily ignored her.

"You're only fourteen, for God's sake, and-" Liz rolled her eyes.

"Jesus, Lily, you sound like my mother." Lily's eyes softened and her shoulders drooped.

"Oh, come on, Liz, I do not." Liz raised her eyebrows and nodded.

"Um, yeah, Lily, you do. My mother is constantly saying that same thing. 'You're only fourteen, for God's sake', but, you know, adjusted to our proper age at the time." Lily glared at Liz. Liz smirked back. Both finally couldn't take it anymore and burst out laughing. "But really, Lils, what _were_ you doing looking out the doorway? That was looking really sketchy, y'know." Lily blushed bright red and glanced at the door.

"Well, if you must know, I, er, I was looking for James." Liz's mouth opened in a wide O.

"That's so adorable!" she cried. "You still care about what you look like when you see him!"

"What happened to your whole 'Sirius will never see me again unless I look completely gorgeous'?" Lily retorted.

Liz blushed. "That was only before we started going out. Now, nobody really cares how I look," she shrugged.

"I know some people who care about everything you do, especially when it concerns Sirius." Liz looked at her questioningly. "His fan club. They definitely care. Some of the more sinister ones even want to murder you."

"I guess I can't blame them for liking Sirius," she said, sinking down into her bed. Lily laughed loudly.

"You're only saying that 'cause you used to be in it!" Liz blushed deeper.

"Shut up, Lily," she muttered. Lily laughed again.

"I'm guessing he doesn't know about that?" Lily was greatly amused at Liz's expense.

Liz glared at Lily. "No, and I'd like to keep it that way. Or else. Remember how I hexed that annoying Slytherin creep last year? The one where he-" Lily nodded and shuddered. She remembered Liz's hexing abilities all too well. Liz smiled. "Good."


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: About the last chapter. Check my profile for Lily's dress from her dream, but make sure you read the note first. Second, Liz's dream about Harry and the bodies (I hope you knew that was Harry) was just a little thing to show that Liz and Sirius are more than just kissing. I also want to warn you that this chapter will be pretty much a complete Liz/Sirius fluff, because the last two were mostly Lily and James. Although, I will warn you, this will be much more romantic and fluffy, because Liz and Sirius are a generally more romantic couple. Finally, buy the song Check Yes Juliet by We the Kings if you don't already have it, and start listening to it now. It was the inspiration for this chapter.

Chapter 10

~*~

Liz and Lily were up late, talking. They were having a typical girly sleepover. Liz was giving Lily a French manicure (Lily had done Liz's black nails and red toenails earlier), and both were sucking on lollipops. Liz's was watermelon, Lily's pineapple. They were blasting Lily's ipod as loud as it would go. "I wonder where they are," Liz muttered to herself. Lily pulled her lollipop out of her mouth exasperatedly.

"I told you, Liz, I know nothing. Except that James had nothing to do with this. He was with me all morning," Lily said. Liz pondered the momentary disappearance of her brother and her boyfriend. A while back, she had heard a muffled bang outside and Sirius cursing. After that, she hadn't heard anything from either one. Liz took her lollipop and poked it at Lily.

"Maybe," she said, "maybe James kidnapped Sirius and isn't letting me see him!"

"Somehow I wonder why none of your theories include Sirius as the bad guy." Lily bent to change the song on her ipod.

"Ooh, can I do it?" Liz asked excitedly. She had never seen the Muggle music-player before. Lily laughed at her pureblooded and ignorant best friend. Liz touched the click-wheel hesitantly, not sure if she was doing it right. She chose the song "Check Yes Juliet". (A/N: *COUGH COUGH* That means listen to it, if you're not already) Lily groaned.

"Liz, you've chosen the same song every single time I let you do it!" Lily exclaimed.

"I like this one," Liz replied. Lily rolled her eyes.

"Ugh, fine. If you must."

"Yes," Liz said defiantly, "I must."

~*~

Outside, James had not actually kidnapped Sirius. Rather, Sirius had threatened to tell Lily about his life plans if he didn't help. Sirius was currently looking for a rock. He refused to tell James why. All he would say was that it was for Liz, and no, he was not giving her a rock as a present. James held up a pebble.

"What about this one?" Sirius knocked the rock out of James's hand.

" Too small. Keep looking." Finally, after it had gotten dark outside, Sirius found what he decided was the perfect rock. Sirius picked it up and walked until he had a perfect angle to Liz's window. James trailed behind him warily. Sirius tossed the rock up and down in his hand and glanced at the sky. It had started raining softly. He looked at Liz's window and prepared to throw it.

"Oh, no," James said, "you'll break the window. My parents will kill me if we break my window, no matter how much they love you." Sirius grinned.

"That's why I'm not chucking it through your window. This is Liz's." James rolled his eyes. There was no reasoning with Sirius. Sirius grinned at James one more time, and pushed his wet hair out of his eyes. He tossed the rock casually up to Liz's balcony, and it crashed through the glass window.

"This is my cue to leave and pretend I have nothing to do with anything. If Mum asks, I never let you do this." James grinned and disappeared inside through the back door.

~*~

Liz and Lily both jumped when the rock crashed through the window. Lily gasped and went outside to see where it had come from. She saw no one sinister or evil-looking, only Sirius, grinning sheepishly. His eyes brightened when he saw the silhouette of someone on Liz's balcony. "Liz!" he exclaimed, "Oh, wait. You're not Liz. I want Liz. Tell her to get out here." He crossed his arms like a little kid. Lily rolled her eyes and muttered, "You're so immature." She turned around and went back inside.

"Who was it?" Liz asked anxiously.

"Sirius," Lily replied, "he's looking for you." Liz laughed and stood up. Lily still did not look amused. "What?" Liz asked.

"Your idiot of a boyfriend just threw a huge rock through our window!" Liz laughed.

"Yeah, and?"

"And that's incredibly stupid and dangerous!"

"No it's not," Liz said stubbornly, "I think it's romantic." She ran out to her balcony. Sirius grinned up at her.

"There you are!" he said, "Want to come outside?" Liz bit her lip and glanced back to Lily, who was waiting inside.

"I would love to, except I promised Lily we'd have a girls only sleepover. She's been begging me for one for ages."

"So sneak out," Sirius shrugged. Liz grinned and blew him a kiss.

"Sure. Just let me explain what's going on to Lils first."

"That kind of defeats the purpose of sneaking out," Sirius said. Liz smiled and bit her lip.

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"Then what are you waiting for? Come on!" Liz grinned. She climbed up the railing agilely and stood on the edge for a moment. "Come on," Sirius cajoled, "It's raining out. Do you want me to chuck another rock at your window? I'm not going 'til you come all the way outside. You can't possibly go back in there tonight." Liz glanced down at the ground. "Come on... 3, 2, 1!" Liz laughed and jumped off the ledge, seeming to float down. That still didn't stop her from landing directly on top of Sirius.

"Sorry!" she said, "I couldn't see where I was landing." Sirius grinned.

"Hey, I don't mind one bit. Though, er, we might want to get kind of away from the window. He might forcibly tear us apart if you give him enough time." Liz turned around quickly and saw James, his arms crossed, glowering at them from the basement window. Liz stuck her tongue out at him and pulled herself up. Sirius stood up quickly and pulled her by the hand farther away from the house.

~*~

Liz laughed as Sirius pulled her farther and farther away from James's watchful eye. As soon as they were completely covered by the trees, Liz stopped Sirius. She turned him to face her and kissed him forcefully. "Why couldn't you have done that when you first saw me?" Sirius murmured. Liz laughed and looked at him, her hazel eyes wide.

"Because I have an overprotective older brother who has no stomach for romance," she answered honestly. Sirius shrugged.

"Speaking of romance..." Sirius pulled a blood-red rose from behind his back and handed it to Liz.

"I never knew there was a rose bush anywhere around here," Liz commented. Sirius stuck his wand in his back pocket.

"Yeah, you just must never have looked properly," he lied. Liz smiled. Sirius chose the moment to kiss her again. Liz broke away. "What...?" he asked. Liz held one finger up and looked around in her bag. She pulled out a Hershey bar with a flourish. "Ah," Sirius said. She bit the chocolate, and almost instantly, Sirius kissed her again. A minute later, they surfaced. "Much better," Sirius grinned.

"Not quite. You stole my chocolate," Liz pouted playfully. Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Well, now we're even." Liz looked at him questioningly.

"What've I ever stolen from you?" she asked. Sirius smiled.

"My heart." Liz's heart leapt.

He took a bit of chocolate and placed it between Liz's teeth. She smiled and swallowed it whole. Liz laughed and kissed him softly.

"You're so adorable when you use those totally cliched yet somehow still romantic lines," she murmured.

"And you're adorable all the time," he whispered back. Liz smiled and looked up at him through her eyelashes. She placed her arms around his neck and kissed him one more time. He kissed her back, smiling. Neither cared that it was pouring rain, or that their clothes were soaked. They were alone and deliriously happy in their own little world.

~*~

Liz fell asleep after a while. Her head laid carefully on Sirius's chest, and one arm was around his waist. His hand rested on top of hers, and he was snoring softly. The stem of the rose was crushed under both of their hands.

Around seven, Sirius woke up. He lifted his head up carefully, making sure not to disturb Liz. She was still sleeping, her eyelashes fluttering with each breath. "No, leave me alone, James," Liz mumbled. Her eyes were still closed, but her hand waved as if she was hitting something. Sirius checked to see if he had woken her up. Still asleep, Liz rolled over and pulled his arm tighter around her. She continued to talk in her sleep. Sirius listened intently. "James, go away. I'm busy. I'd rather talk to Sirius than you. He's more beautiful anyway." Sirius laughed softly. At his laugh, Liz finally opened her eyes. She looked up and saw Sirius, albeit upside down. "Hey," she smiled.

"Okay, are you really awake? 'Cause you were talking before," Sirius said. Liz laughed self-consciously.

"Oh, God," she groaned, "please tell me I wasn't actually saying anything important."

"You were just mumbling incoherently," Sirius lied. Liz rolled over and began drawing little circles along his arm.

"I know you're lying," Liz informed him. He responded with a kiss.

~*~

At nine that morning, Liz burst through the door, soaking wet and clutching a soggy rose to her chest. Lily couldn't help but laugh at her best friend as she proceeded to dry the rose with Lily's hair dryer. Lily handed her a towel from the bathroom. Liz wrapped it around herself, forming a curtain between her and Lily. She began to strip off her wet clothing, then rummaged in her closet for dry things. She threw a pair of plaid shorts, a light blue t-shirt, and a pair of black flip-flops behind her. Lily threw her arms up to block her face from the flying shoes. Liz turned around and collected her clothes from Lily. She took them into the bathroom, and shut the white door firmly behind her. She clicked the lock, then unlocked it a second later. Liz stuck her arm out the door. She held the rose out to Lily. "Dry this for me?" she asked breathlessly. Lily rolled her eyes but still took the rose.

"Well?" she called over the sound of the hair-dryer, "how was your night?" Liz grinned deliriously to herself

"Absolutely amazing."


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Yay! Why am I saying yay? Well *deep breath* I have almost 300 hits, over 10 chapters, and over 10,000 words. Huzzah! As always, you know the drill, read, review, Kat, thanks, etc. Oh, and just so you know, this part takes place on the train to Hogwarts. Summer is over.

Chapter 11

~*~

Liz laid with her head on Sirius's lap, inspecting her nails. Lily and James were deep in a conversation about something secretive. Liz thought that they had been talking too long, and felt the need to interrupt. "Lily!" she said loudly. "Come with me to go get chocolate?"

"Can't you go alone?" Lily whined. Liz glared at her until she got the message. Lily kissed James quickly and followed Liz outside. Liz pulled Lily halfway down the hall. "What do you want? There was no need to interrupt!" Lily said.

"Oh, er... actually, you already answered my question." Lily looked at her blankly. "I, er, I was just wondering what was going on with you and James," Liz said quickly, "but the little kiss basically answered my question. I wouldn't even know if you two were still together or not." Lily continued to look confused.

"That was it? Of course we're together!"

"Yeah, well, you two don't act at all coupley," Liz retorted. Lily crossed her arms.

"Just because we aren't like you and Sirius," Lily said quietly. Liz blushed as Lily continued, "And we don't stick our tongues down each other's throats every five seconds, does not mean we're not a real couple. Don't even try to deny it, you know it's completely true."

"Jeez, Lils," Liz muttered, still blushing, "temper much?" Lily softened her glare slightly.

"You know I don't like to kiss people in public," Lily said. Liz nodded.

"True. But anyway, I'll be back in a minute. I really do want some chocolate." She paused only to grin evilly at Lily. Lily tried not to imagine exactly how Liz was going to use this chocolate as she made her way back into the compartment where James and Sirius were. Sirius looked up hopefully as Lily slid the glass door open.

"Liz is getting some-" Her words were interrupted by a dark presence striding into the compartment. Bellatrix Black, Sirius's cousin.

"What do you want, Bella?" Sirius growled.

"I just wanted to say hello to my favorite cousin," Bellatrix said, her dark eyes widening innocently. Sirius gripped his wand and glared at her.

"What do you want, Bellatrix?" he repeated. His face hardened. Sirius hated anything that reminded him of what he considered his unfortunate relation to his family.

"I really did just come to see how you and your little girlfriend are doing," Bellatrix simpered, "but -oh- she's not here! What a shame. Have you tired of her that quickly, cuz?" James gripped his wand, almost snapping it with the intensity of his grip. It was one thing to annoy her cousin, but insulting Liz was something else entirely. Bellatrix laughed humorlessly. "Of course, given your... reputation... it was only a matter of time." She leaned forward and winked at Sirius as if she was including his in a secret. "Decided you'd be better off without a blood traitor like that, I know." _BANG_. Bellatrix was on the floor, stunned, in a flash of red light.

"Where...where did that come from?"Lily wondered aloud. Liz appeared, leaned up against the compartment doorway. She twirled her wand and blew on the tip, James Bond-style. She walked a few steps forward with a hint of a smile on her face, and proceeded to trip over Bellatrix. James roared with laughter.

"Smooth, Liz," he chortled, "really klutzy, you are."

Sirius pulled her closer to him. "Klutzy," he murmured, smiling, "but that was still bloody sexy."Liz smiled seductively and kissed him.

"Oh, God, please, you two," James said, turning away. Lily stared at them hopelessly.

"Must you?" Lily said.

"We will hex you apart," James added, "believe me, we will." Liz broke away from Sirius, looking slightly annoyed.

"Lily," she said. She motioned for Lily to come nearer. Lily scooted over. "I would totally have stuck my tongue out at you a second ago," she whispered so James couldn't hear, "but my tongue was kind of busy, if you catch my drift." Sirius grinned when he heard this. Lily stared at her best friend disgustedly.

"James," she said, her tone slightly shocked, "you have a kind of sick little sister." James seemed unconcerned.

"Well, what do you expect?" he smiled, "She grew up with the Marauders."

~*~

Back at Hogwarts, Lily noticed how instantaneously _right_ being in the castle felt. She felt like she had belonged, unlike at home these days. Her sister Petunia was getting married in October, and that was all her parents could talk about. There was no thought to the fact that in two months, Lily would be gone for another long year. Petunia had managed, somehow, to turn what seemed like most of the world against Lily. She smiled as she entered the Great Hall and saw its familiar weathered ceiling, charmed a clear night for the occasion. Lily was at home.

~*~

Liz chattered happily to all the friends she hadn't seen over the summer. She laughed often, her dark-brown hair glistening with its sun-bleached highlights. James smiled fondly at his little sister, across the table. She caught his eye and smiled back. James thought how wonderful this year was going to be. He had his friends, his family, and most of all, he had Lily. Remus Lupin leaned in towards James. "So, Prongs, any big spectacle planned to catch Lily's heart yet?" he joked. Lily slid into the seat next to James and kissed his cheek softly.

"No spectacle necessary this time," she smiled. James grinned. Remus gaped at them.

"You-you actually got together?" he said incredulously. James nodded happily. He snaked his arm around Lily's waist.

"She finally admitted I'm not such a bigheaded git after all," he said cheerfully. Remus smiled at both of them.

He stood up and said, "Knew she'd cave in eventually, Prongs. Cheers, mate." He went off to go get more food, leaving Lily and James alone.

"So I'm allowed to kiss you now? Now that people know that Lily Evans finally admitted that I am not a horrible, evil person who doesn't deserve a second of her time?"

"Was I really that bad?" she asked.

"You hated me!" James said.

"Well, it's not like you weren't just as bad," Lily retorted, "I still have nightmares about the time in fourth year at breakfast." She shuddered. Sirius appeared out of nowhere.

"Oh, you mean the serenading you over Cheerios?" he chuckled, "My idea completely. I mean, do you really think ol' Prongs here could've come up with something that amazing? Genius, I tell you. Complete genius."

"So, Padfoot," James began. Sirius grinned, knowing what was coming.

"Now I know it's something bad," Lily muttered, "if you two are grinning like that." Liz slid into the seat next to Lily. She was grinning too, purely because Sirius's smile made her happy. "Oh, no. What's going on? Why are you all smiling conspiratorially?"

"What a large word," Sirius remarked idly. Lily still did not smile.

"I think," James announced, "we should really start off the year right. Enter sixth year with a bang." Liz smiled.

"Fifth. What do you have in mind?" she said. Sirius and James grinned at each other.

At the same time, they said, "Strip poker."

~*~

About two hours later, the four were sitting around a small table, cards spread out. Lily was blushing furiously. She was down to only her t-shirt and underwear. James and Sirius were unconcerned with their clothing situation. Both had lost only their t-shirts. Liz was still fully clothed. She was extremely good at poker. "Remind me again why I agreed to do this?" Lily said, her voice muffled by the pillow she was clutching tight to her chest.

"So we can see how well your skin matches your hair when you blush," James said casually. Lily blushed harder.

Liz smiled at her best friend. "Because you love us," she said simply. Lily noticed that she kept sneaking furtive glances towards Sirius.

"And, Liz, please, stop that. We can all see exactly what you're looking at," Lily added, trying to shift the focus off herself. Liz blushed finally. Liz mumbled something that only Lily caught. James glanced between them suspiciously.

"You have any idea what they're talking about?" he asked Sirius. Sirius shot the girls a smile and put his arm around Liz's shoulders.

"Me," he said casually. James rolled his eyes.

"Of course they are." James sat up suddenly as Liz kissed Sirius softly. "Hey, hey, hey, you two, none of that! Wait until you're dressed again, please." Lily laughed quietly, her laugh still muffled by the pillow.

"I'm dressed. Clothes right here," Liz reminded her brother. Sirius grinned mischievously.

"I could change that," he said. Liz grinned and slid closer to him. He kissed her. Neither noticed James's fake retching sounds, or the pillow Lily had thrown at them. They just continued to kiss.

~*~


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Sorry it took me so long to update, but I have been cursed with an abnormal amount of homework. I also was waiting for reviews, and I got some... but that's not enough! I would like many, many more reviews. Plus, I want to write enough chapters so I get the drop-down menu for my list of chapters. And, for the usual things, read, review, and thanks Kat! Oh, and by the way, this chapter begins around the time I updated this chapter. In December, for all you morons out there like me who don't know what month it is...

Chapter 12

~*~

Lily, James, and Sirius were huddled together in the common room. Sirius was really more to the side, keeping watch at the door. He was pretending to be a spy, slinking around walls and humming the James Bond theme under his breath. "So you'll make sure she doesn't set a single foot in here until 8, right?" Lily said to James. James nodded.

"She won't see a thing," James promised.

All of a sudden, Sirius screamed out, "INCOMING! LIZ IS COMING! STOP TALKING ABOUT THE-" Liz pranced into the room, smiling.

"Stop talking about what?" she asked, sliding into the couch next to James.

"Absolutely nothing," Lily smiled.

"Yeah, nothing," James piped up, shooting Sirius an evil glare. Liz bit her bottom lip. "Not the sinister plotting lip-bite," James sighed. Liz stood up and smiled seductively at Sirius. He kissed her back, but she broke away and turned to James and Lily.

"See, I can be very persuasive when I want to," she said. James rolled his eyes and Lily choked. Liz laughed.

Sirius crossed his arms. "I'm not telling," he said. Liz kissed him again.

"That's what you think," she muttered.

"What was that?" James asked.

"Nothing," Liz smiled at him serenely, "absolutely nothing."

~*~

For the next two weeks, Lily, James, and Sirius kept the secret from Liz. Lily and James planned the secret, while Sirius kept Liz busy so she wouldn't ask too many questions. Despite his best efforts, Liz still constantly bothered Lily about it. Finally, Lily had to resort to threatening Liz. "If you don't stop trying to figure out what this is," she said, "I will tell him." Liz smirked at her.

"Lils, that's all well and good, but I think you'll find I've got no idea what you're talking about. Tell who what?" Lily smiled at Liz and turned to Sirius.

"Do the letters SBFC mean anything to you?" she asked sweetly. Liz gasped.

"You wouldn't," she said, her eyes widening. Lily laughed dryly.

"Oh, believe me, I would." Liz stopped talking. Sirius, however, was trying to figure out the meaning behind 'SBFC'.

"Ooh, I know!" he said. Liz bolted up. "It's the Southern Bland Fried Chicken!" Liz laughed.

"Exactly right," she said, shooting a glance at Lily. Lily kept silent and only stared out the doorway. James ran in.

"Lily!" he exclaimed, "problem about the p-" He stopped in the middle of the word ad he noticed Liz.

"Problem? About the p-what?" she asked innocently. James cleared his throat loudly and stared pointedly at Sirius.

"Oh, right. Liz, look! A shiny object!" He pointed towards the common room.

"Ooh, where?" She pulled Sirius by the hand to go look for the shiny object.

"Right," James said, "so, listen, her birthday's tomorrow."

"I know! The 24th." Lily snapped. "Go on."

"Well, the thing is, Mum just wrote to me and said she wants to know what we're doing for Liz's 15th birthday, 'cause we're all here for the Christmas break."

"That's not so bad! Your mother can keep a secret."

"I haven't gotten to the bad part yet."

"Well, what is it?" James pulled a letter out of his pocket and handed it to Lily.

"Read," he commanded. Lily scanned the letter. It said:

_Dear James,_

_I've just realized-you and your sister are staying at Hogwarts for the Christmas holidays, so we won't be able to see Liz turn fifteen! I do hope that you have something planned for her. 15 is a big year. But if you have a party, would you mind terribly if we came along? We won't ruin your fun, we'll just pop in, and we'll be out in a flash. We've got it all cleared with Dumbledore. Just thought you ought to know. See you soon, Jamesie!_

_Lots of love,_

_Mum_

"They-they're coming to our party?" Lily asked quietly.

James nodded grimly. "This is going to be quite the party."

~*~

Later that night, as she was about to go to bed, Liz was carefully applying makeup. She noticed Lily watching her carefully.

"What on earth are you doing?" Liz smiled and capped her eyeliner.

"James has a sort of tradition. Well, I suppose it's Sirius too now, since he's been staying with us at breaks the past few years. They always wake me up on my birthday very early, because it's the one day of the year I don't get violent if I'm woken up," Liz explained. Lily smiled.

"Well, if you're getting up early, you'd better get some sleep." Liz glanced at her reflection once more and climbed into her bed. She was asleep within an instant.

~*~

Early that morning, around seven AM, James and Sirius were crouched by the door. "Alright... ready?" James whispered, "In 3...2...1!" They burst through the door and ran to Liz. "Happy birthday!" James screamed. Sirius got to Liz first. He jumped onto her bed and kissed her. Liz sat up and kissed him back. Lily noted the lip-gloss stain on her pillow. She also noted that when Liz and Sirius broke away, his lips were very pink and shiny. Sirius grinned.

"Happy birthday, beautiful," he said. Liz smiled.

"Yeah, happy birthday, Liz," James and Lily chorused.

"Thanks, guys. I can't believe I'm fifteen! I feel old, wow." James laughed and ruffled her hair.

"Still younger than the rest of us, little sis." He emphasized the 'little'. Liz punched his arm playfully.

"Being that it is my birthday, you have to be nice." James rolled his eyes.

"Fine," he sighed, "but I'm already being nice enough with my present." Liz's attention span was too short to care. She sat up and clapped her hands gleefully.

"Ooh, presents!" she exclaimed.

"ADD much?" Lily muttered.

"I heard that, Lily," Liz said, throwing the covers off herself. Liz stood up and began to rummage through her closet.

"I thought you wanted presents," Sirius said.

"I do, but, Mum will want pictures, so I have to look nice." James sniggered and pointed to the waistband of the light blue boxers Liz had slept in. Upside down, in bold block letters, it read 'Sirius Black'. Lily raised her eyebrows amusedly.

"Where'd you get those, Liz?" Lily asked. Liz spun around to see what Lily meant.

"Oh, this! Under James's bed." She continued her search for clothing appropriate for present-opening. Lily laughed out loud. James turned bright red.

"No idea where that came from," he said quickly. Liz laughed and threw a pair of skinny jeans at her brother. "Anyway, we'll meet you ladies in the common room, shall we?" He smiled and shut the door behind him carefully. Sirius kissed Liz once more, whispered "Happy birthday" again, and followed James.

~*~

Liz sat on the largest red couch, a small pile of presents by her feet. James handed her a smallish square package. Liz hurriedly ripped off the shiny, turquoise wrapping paper. She grinned at James as she saw what was inside it. He had gotten her an ipod just like Lily's. "Oh, my God, James!" she exclaimed, "no way! That is so awesome!" He leaned over and hugged her brother. James grinned and hugged her back.

"Oh, but, there's, er, something else," James added.

"There's something else?" Liz asked incredulously.

"Well, it's really from Mum, but this is me, too. You know how you two go shopping for your birthday every year?" Liz nodded happily. "Well, since Mum's not here this year, she told me that... well, I have to take you shopping this year." Sirius and Lily roared with laughter.

"Good!" Liz said happily, "I need someone strong to hold all the boxes."

"How much can you possibly actually need to buy?" Sirius asked.

"Oh, you have never had the pleasure of seeing my sister with my mum's credit card," James said darkly.

"All my stuff barely fit in the car last year," Liz said cheerfully.

"We'll go tomorrow, okay?" James said quickly. "Knowing you, it'll take all day."

"If you're done, Prongs, you and Lils should leave," Sirius said. James narrowed his eyes.

"Why," he stated.

"Too much romance for your eyes," Sirius teased. Liz stuck her tongue out. James grumbled but got up and left with Lily. Liz's heartbeat sped up slightly. Sirius pulled a tiny, rectangular blue box out and handed it to Liz. Gingerly, she lifted the lid. Inside was a silver heart locket. Her eyes teared up and she looked wordlessly at Sirius.

"It's beautiful," she whispered.

"Open it," he said. She touched the clasp on the side and the heart split open. On one side was an elaborately carved script _L_. The other side was adorned with an S. Liz smiled and bit her lip. Sirius took the necklace out of the box and clasped it around Liz's neck. She touched the heart, and noticed that it seemed to fit her perfectly.

"I'll never take it off," she promised. Sirius simply kissed her.

~*~

About twenty minutes after being forcibly shooed from the common room, James and Lily were engrossed in a much less romantic activity. They were snogging furiously. James broke away suddenly. "Who would've thought," he grinned, "that the uptight Lily Evans would be such a wild kisser."

"And who would've also thought," Lily retorted, "that James Potter, player extraordinnare, would snog like a baby hedgehog." James simply smiled. He was well used to Lily's temper flaring up at almost every moment.

"Hedgehog is _yoshe_ is Russian," he commented.

"How on earth do you know that?" Lily asked, a smile playing on her lips.

"I have my ways," James said huskily. He smiled and kissed her again. "Y'know, you kiss better when you smile." Lily raked a hand through his hair.

"Good thing you make me smile, then."

~*~

A while later, after both couples had finished kissing each other, Lily and James returned. Lily still had her present to give to Liz. Lily stood facing Liz. "Your present will come later tonight," she said, "but I will tell you everything now. All good birthdays require, of course, a party. So... I'm throwing you a party! Happy birthday, Liz!" Liz jumped up and down and screamed. James and Sirius covered their ears playfully. "And, I just have to give you the little bit of bad news before the good news."

"Please, start with the good news?" Liz begged.

"Alright. We have everyone invited, a pina colada bar, neon turquoise, of course, and I bought you a dress."

"You got me a dress? Can I see it?" Liz whispered excitedly.

"No," Lily replied, "not in front of them."

"Why not?" the boys said together.

"Well," Lily said, "Sirius can't see it til the party, you know, all that romantic tradition stuff-"

"I thought that was just for weddings," James interrupted.

"Same difference," Liz said, swatting him impatiently, "Go on, Lils."

"And James wouldn't let you wear it if he saw it, so for the sake of the gorgeous dress, we're keeping it secret." Liz grinned.

"That must mean it's absolutely adorable," she said happily.

"More like absolutely slutty," Lily snorted.

Sirius grinned. "Adorable and slutty. Perfect."

"You're such a freak," Lily muttered, noting Liz's smile at that comment.

"Wait," Liz said suddenly, "I just remembered something. Bad news?"

Lily nodded. "Right. Well... I tried to stop her, really I did. But... your mother insisted on coming. And she's bringing your dad, and both grandmas-" James and Liz gasped. James got very pale.

"B-both of them?" Liz stuttered. Lily nodded sadly. James and Liz turned to each other.

Together, monotonously, they echoed, "Grandma."


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Check out the pictures on my profile! And, one other thing, the Russian hedgehog thing is true! _Yoshe _is really hedgehog in Russian. And if you're wondering how I know that, like James, I have my ways. *Insert evil laugh here*. And, of course, please read, review, and thanks to my bestie! (Aw, God, that sounded like a cheerleader on Red Bull. I meant my best friend, Kat).

Chapter 13

~*~

"Grandma?" Lily demanded, "what's wrong with your grandma?" James began to suck his thumb and rock back and forth. "One little old lady couldn't be _that_ bad." Liz smiled grimly and waved her hand in front of James's face.

"You obviously have never met Annemarie Potter. Dear old grandmum is a complete nightmare," Liz shuddered, "she's horrible."

"I was there once when she popped in," Sirius interjected, "she cut my hair off." Lily stared at him.

"See, Grandma is really old-fashioned. And she's very closed-minded about things."

"By things you mean..." Lily said warily. James spoke finally, but his eyes were cold and blank.

He said, "Grandma heard that I liked you. She also heard that you're... that your parents are Muggles. And then she tried to set me up with Bellatrix, Sirius's cousin." Lily sat down next to James.

"Oh. I didn't realize," Lily said quietly.

"It's not your fault," Liz said finally, turning to face her, "You had no idea."

"Well," Lily grinned, understanding instantly exactly what Liz and James needed, "I have a feeling your dress might kill her, so..." James and Liz brightened immediately.

"Can I see it now?" Liz asked excitedly. Lily nodded and led the way upstairs. She opened her closet and, with a flourish, pulled out a short dress. Liz's mouth opened in a wide O. The dress was a super-short blue halter, with a very low-cut top.

"Oh my God!" Liz gasped, "It's gorgeous! They're going to have an absolute heart attack when they see it!" Lily giggled.

"You want to see mine?" Liz nodded happily, still examining her own dress. Lily pulled out a dress that was also quite short. It was a silvery gray-black strapless one, with beading near the waist.

"Ooh, adorable," Liz said appreciatively, "and classy, too."

"Unlike yours!" Lily teased.

"You're the one that bought it!"

"You're fifteen. You're supposed to look slutty." Liz grinned.

"I like your way of thinking."

~*~

All day, Lily and Liz kept themselves locked in the girls' dorm, practically attacking anyone who tried to come in. An hour before the party, Lily was completely dressed. Liz was just coming out of the shower. Lily knocked on the door and called, "Liz? Come on, it's getting late." Liz burst out of the door, her hair soaking wet, wearing only a towel. She ran to her bed, where Lily had laid out her dress and a pair of strappy heels that matched her dress. Liz motioned for Lily to turn around, and as she did, she got dressed. "You know your hair is going to drip all over you and ruin your outfit," Lily commented.

"No, watch this," Liz said breathlessly. She pointed her wand at her head, and it was instantly dry, straightened to perfection. "Mum taught me all these cool little beauty spells a while ago. I can magically dry, straighten, curl, or braid my hair, plus I can tie my shoes. That's really come in handy." Lily smirked at her. "What? Tying shoes is hard!" Lily rolled her eyes. She was determined not to say anything, it being Liz's birthday.

Once she was completely dressed, Liz twirled around. "What do you think? Do I look okay?"

Lily smiled. "You look better than okay. You look amazing. Happy birthday," she said. Liz smiled and spritzed one final spray of perfume on her wrist. She took Lily's arm and went to meet James and Sirius.

~*~

James and Sirius were waiting together, but with very different expressions. James, having grown up with Liz, was used to her taking hours to get dressed. On a normal day, it took about an hour and a half. But her fifteenth birthday was no ordinary day. He sat down and sighed.

Sirius, on the other hand, never had a little sister. He especially had never had a little sister quite like Liz Potter. He kept glancing up the stairs and talking to himself.

"How much longer, Prongs?" Sirius said dejectedly.

"For the last time," James said, exasperated, "I have no-" He was cut off by giggles coming from the stairs. Both boys whipped around suddenly. Liz ran into Sirius's arms and kissed him. After he had finished kissing her back, she spun around.

"What do you think? Isn't it gorgeous?"Sirius grinned.

"Remind me to thank Lily for it later." He stared at her, his eyes pausing at her chest. Liz slapped his arm playfully.

"You're so sick sometimes," she said, rolling her eyes.

"I was merely admiring how well my present complements your dress," he grinned. Liz rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, sure you were." Sirius put his hand to his heart and pretended to look offended.

"You have no faith in me, sweetie. I am a changed man, thanks to the influence of my dearest beauty over here." Liz laughed.

"Some things never change."

"Oh, but some do," Sirius said mysteriously.

"You sound like a perverted old man." Liz said grouchily.

"All except the old part," Sirius said cheerfully, taking her hand, "But come on, l up, it's your birthday! I know exactly what you need." He handed her a piece of chocolate, which she graciously accepted.

"I think I'm going to need something a little stronger than that," Liz said darkly. Sirius laughed. He glanced at James and Lily hesitantly. James was unable to take his eyes off Lily. Liz elbowed him in the ribs. "What's the big deal?" she hissed, "you've seen Lily dressed up like this before!"

"Yeah, but now I can say she looks gorgeous without her slapping me," James said. Lily smiled. "See, that was me saying you look gorgeous without saying it outright," he added. Liz rolled her eyes.

"That kind of ruins the effect of it all, James," she said.

"It's a good thing Lily doesn't like romance, 'cause if she did Prongs wouldn't have a chance," Sirius said.

"I'm blessed with extraordinary luck," James said fondly. Lily gasped suddenly.

"Oh! That reminds me! You three, sit. We have about"- she glanced at the clock- "twenty minutes before your family gets here. A few things to go over before then... first, Liz, come here." Liz stood up warily. Lily pointed her wand at Liz. Her dress lengthened, and the top went upward. It also became less tight. Sirius and Liz both had horrified expressions on their faces.

"Why did you do that, Lily," Sirius cried, burying his face in his hands, "why? It was so young, it didn't have to die..." Liz sat next to him and put her arm around him.

"Now look what you've done!" Liz said crossly.

"I had to," Lily explained, "and I'll change it back when your parents leave. It's just so your grandmother doesn't murder you on the spot. You know she would, too." Liz nodded.

"Alright, fine. But why aren't you doing anything to yours?"

"Because I, unlike you, manage to retain some class." Sirius sat up and grinned.

"I happen to like Liz's. Before you went and ruined it." Lily rolled her eyes.

"Of course you do, you're her boyfriend! You're obligated to like whatever she wears."

"Yeah, well, that still doesn't mean it's not bloody sexy," Sirius argued.

Lily muttered, "I really shouldn't have bought that dress." James nodded fervently. "Anyway, look, secondly. You two, try to contain yourselves. From what I've heard about your grandmother, she does not take kindly to romance. So, just try to keep your hands off her for one hour."

"Not like I could actually touch her with your new dress contraption, Lily," Sirius mumbled.

"That's besides the point. I'm just saying, don't be yourselves."

"What a bad life lesson," Liz said, faking disapproval. Lily rolled her eyes. Sirius deliberately moved closer to James and away from Liz.

"See, I can be good," he said defiantly. Liz kissed him softly, and he instantly moved closer to her again.

"This is going to be harder than I thought," Lily murmured. James stood up and kissed her, smiling widely.

"The party's going to be great, Lily-flower. I know it." Liz broke away from Sirius.

"Aw, that's so adorable!" she said happily.

A voice came in from the doorway. "I know something else that's adorable! Where's my Jamesie and Lizzie?"


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Remember to check out the pictures on my profile. And, as usual, thanks Kat, please read, and PLEASE review! I always say that I won't update until I get reviews, but this time I mean it! I want more reviews. I have 4 at the moment. NOT ENOUGH!

Chapter 14

~*~

_A voice came in from the doorway. "I know something else that's adorable! Where's my Jamesie and Lizzie?"_

~*~

Liz and James spun around. "Mum!" Liz cried. James walked swiftly around the red couch and hugged his mother, who instantly began to sob. She held a tissue up to her eyes.

"Why are you crying?" James asked, bewildered.

"I just can't believe it," she sniffed, "my little Lizzie! Fifteen! So grown up... Oh, come here, you two." She pulled them closer. James was still confused. Liz rolled her eyes. After sixteen years of her emotional outbreaks, he should be used to it, Liz thought. Her mother held Liz at arms length. "Now," she clucked her tongue, "let me look at you. Oh, this is gorgeous! Who picked out this dress? It's sexy, too!" She winked. James turned bright red.

"Please, Mum, don't ever say that," he pleaded quietly. His mother just laughed.

"Jamesie, I haven't had a chance to embarrass you since August. Give me time. I'll only be here for an hour, and besides, I have to share you with Grandma!" Liz rolled her eyes. "Now, Lizzie, I thought James talked about his Lily nonstop, but you-"

"Oh, look, Mum!" Liz interrupted her, "here's Lily now! And Sirius too. Why don't you say hello to them?" And stop talking to me, she added silently.

"Oh, Lily, dear! It's so nice to see you. You look gorgeous. How are you doing? Is your mother well?" Lily laughed. The Potters' mother was exactly like James and Liz, chattering nonstop.

Lily reached over and hugged Mrs. Potter. "I'm good," she smiled.

"I do hope you'll be over soon, dear. I've missed you terribly. Come to our house whenever you can. Open invitation, just drop in whenever possible. And you know you're welcome anytime as well, Sirius, dear," Mrs. Potter continued. Sirius grinned.

"Hey, Kate," Sirius said lazily. Lily wondered how he knew Mrs. Potter so well.

"Oh, don't you just look wonderful!" she said, "Now, hold on a moment, I need pictures, I want some decent ones before Grandma gets here-" An old woman came into the room.

"Well, now! How are my loveliest darlings?" James and Liz's faces burst into wide grins.

"Grandma!" they exclaimed.

"Happy birthday, Liz. I've got your present right here." She pulled out a medium-sized box, wrapped in gold paper. Liz ripped it open without a moment's hesitation.

"Oh my gosh, Grandma," she gasped, "they're gorgeous! And these go perfectly with my dress, how did you know?"

"A little birdie told me that she was having trouble finding just the right shoes for tonight, so I simply took matters into my own hand," she said mysteriously, the corners of her mouth twitching up into a smile. Liz promptly took off the shoes she was wearing and put on the new ones, tripping over her own feet in the process. Sirius caught her and grinned.

"Nice," he said. She kissed him.

"Thanks." She stood up. The elder Potter women laughed.

"I really do want photos, though," Mrs. Potter said. She positioned Liz in the middle, with Sirius on one side, and James and Lily on the other. "Squeeze together now."

"Gladly," Sirius said, tightening his arm around Liz's waist. Liz laughed. She brushed her hair off her face and smiled.

"What's wrong with your grandma, James?" Lily whispered in his ear.

"Different grandma, Lils," Sirius said. He leaned over and brushed a lock of hair off Liz's cheek and kissed her softly, smiling. Lily stared at them waspishly.

"You're just jealous, Lils," Liz commented, "that us as a couple makes Siz, you know, like sizzling hot, whereas you and James just make Lames." Sirius laughed and kissed Liz again.

"You're unbearable," Lily muttered.

"I was thinking more along the lines of positively the best-looking girl in the world," Sirius interjected.

"I couldn't agree more," Liz said. James turned around to their conversation, snaking an arm around Lily's shoulders.

"Oh, I dunno," he said, "I may have to disagree there."

"Smooth, Prongs," Sirius laughed. James had twirled a strand of Lily's hair around his finger, but his finger only got caught in her hair. As he attempted to get it out, Liz gasped. "What?" Sirius said, his face alive with concern.

"She-she's here," Liz faltered. A crabby-looking old woman hobbled into the room. She instantly began to complain, finding something wrong with everything from Liz's jewelry to the decorations to the dirt on the bottom of Sirius's black Converse.

"You look like a right slut, Elizabeth. Carrying on with this disgrace in public! And James, what have you done with your head? Your hair looks like it's been through a train wreck. But I suppose being a blood traitor is the latest fashion," she sniffed. She dropped her black fur coat in her granddaughter's arms. "Oh." she said dramatically, noticing Lily for the first time. "So this is the Muggle-born. And here I was, thinking the heir to the Potter family would have better taste in women! And you." She turned to Sirius, looking him over disdainfully. "Your mother was such a good influence! It's such a shame. A right awful shame, that a boy from a family like yours had to come out this way. I hear you're with Elizabeth now! Probably the first good decision I've seen her make about her consorts. A Black and a Potter, should produce something decent." Liz flushed pink.

"Drop dead, Grandma," she muttered under her breath.


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Sorry the last chapter was so short! I've had this written for a while, but I wanted to wait for reviews, so I didn't post it as soon as I finished. Well, that's not really true. I love writing this story, so I tell myself I'm not going to write until I get reviews, but then I get inspired and... But, anyway, this time I actually did do it! Read, review, thanks Kat, and enjoy!

Chapter 15

~*~

The Potters stayed for an hour. As promised, Lily shrunk Liz's dress back to normal, much to Sirius's relief. As soon as it was just the four of them, Liz threw her arms around Sirius and kissed him passionately. James and Lily groaned. "Guys, come on. People are coming. You're going to scare away the guests," James complained. Sirius sheepishly pushed Liz of him and smiled innocently at James.

"You're right," he whispered loudly to Liz, "they are jealous."

"Jealous of what?" Lily asked skeptically.

"Lames!" Liz said.

"What are you-"

"Lames. You are Lames."

"Do you honestly think I care about something as stupid as-"

"Yes I do, Lame-o." Sirius stepped in between them.

"Ladies, ladies. As much as I enjoy a good catfight, this is not the time. This is a time for celebration. Be happy. Enjoy life," he said.

"You sound like a hermit who sits cross-legged, balanced on the very tip of Mt. Everest, wrapped in a toga and getting paid to tell people the meaning of life," James said. Liz smiled at her brother kindly.

"You've been waiting to say that for a long time, haven't you, Prongs?" Sirius asked. James blushed.

"Well, er..." James said quietly. Lily laughed.

"Come on, James. It's party time."

~*~

The rest of the party went by in a blur. The music blasted and the lights on the dance floor flashed. Everyone admired Liz and Lily's dresses. The pile of presents near the pina colada bar grew and grew.

Slowly, the guests began to leave, until only the four were left. A slow song came on. Lily flopped down on the couch and sighed. James sat next to her and looked at her quizzically. She was staring at Liz and Sirius. They were dancing very slowly. Her arms were wrapped around his neck, and his hands were at her waist. They were gazing into each other's eyes, both pairs with the same little sparkle. James put his arm around Lily and tried to kiss her, bu she stopped him. "You know I don't like to kiss in public," she said in a low voice. James shrugged.

"I know. But the only people here are those two, and I don't think they're going to notice anything." Lily smiled grudgingly and inched closer to James. After years of hating him, she wasn't quite sure how to like him yet. She kissed him softly.

"I love you, Lily," James sighed unthinkingly. Lily's eyes widened. This wasn't the first time he had said those words to her, but this time felt so much more real. Lily hastily kissed him again, forgoing any words. She had no response to that. Deep, deep down, Lily ached to just simply respond, "I love you too". But in the world of James Potter and Lily Evans, nothing could ever be that simple. ~*~

Liz yawned, her eyes drifting shut. Sirius lifted her chin. "You tired, love?" he said gently. Liz's heart leaped. He hadn't exactly said he loved her, but she considered it close enough. She nodded, careful to keep her emotions in check. "Come on, then," he said, "let's go."

"I don't want to," Liz mumbled. Sirius grinned.

"I'll carry you." Without waiting for an answer, he swooped her up in his arms and carried her swiftly to her dormitory. James stared worriedly as Liz laughed the whole way up the stairs.

"Lils, if, er, they don't come out soon-"

"I'll go in there in a little bit," Lily reassured him. James smiled, his whole face more relaxed.

"Now, then. Where were we?"

~*~

Sirius set Liz down next to her bed. She yawned. "If you're tired, love, go to sleep. The party's over, anyway," he suggested.

Liz shook her head. "I know, but I don't want to leave you."

"I could stay here, if you want," Sirius said casually. Liz perked up, suddenly wide awake. He laughed.

"Well, you'll need to leave for a few minutes while I change," Liz giggled. Sirius grinned again. Something about Liz that night made him unable to keep the smile off his face.

"I won't look," he promised. Liz rolled her eyes but allowed him to stay anyway. He put his hands over his eyes, making sure to leave enough space so that he could see. Sirius may have grown up a little, but he hadn't changed that much. She has to know I'm watching, Sirius thought as he watched Liz unzip the side of her dress, or maybe she's just naturally sexy. He chuckled to himself a bit. Liz grinned as she quickly dressed in black shorts with white polka dots and a white tank top.

"You can look now," she smiled. Sirius uncovered his eyes. He kissed her, and they somehow managed to find their way to Liz's bed, with her almost completely on top of him. She lifted herself up and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Not tonight," she whispered, rolling on her side. She laid her head on his chest, and he put his arm around her shoulders.

"You're killing me, love. Goodnight."

"Night, Sirius." And both fell asleep. Neither could think of anywhere they would rather be.

~*~

A few hours later, Lily and James glanced at the clock. "I was supposed to check on them, wasn't I," Lily sighed. James nodded.

"Yeah, but you kind of got distracted." Lily laughed.

"You're my favorite kind of distraction. But come on, I can't go up there alone." She stood up and held out her hand. "Come on, James." The two walked the way to the girls' dorm, hand in hand, James wincing the whole way. At the door, they stopped.

"I don't hear anything," James whispered with a terrified glance at Lily. She bit her lip and pushed open the door.

"They-they're just sleeping," Lily said quietly.

"What has this world come to?" James cried. "What has my sister done to him? I-I got to say, I never expected to see this."

At that moment, Liz's voice came, sleep mixed with annoyance. "And I never wanted to see you here. Get out before I throw something at you." James and Lily quickly backed out of the room.

~*~

The next morning, Liz and Lily sat dissecting the events of the party over breakfast. "And did you _see_ Jess Fascanella's dress? _So_ hideous."

"I know," Lily responded, "it was the completely wrong color for her complexion."

James groaned from across the table. "Are you two going to sit here discussing clothing all day?" he complained. Liz stood up and reached across the table to grab a piece of toast.

"Of course not, James. Today is a special day. Do you know why?" James brightened instantly.

"Is there Quidditch practice?" Lily rolled her eyes.

"I swear, all you boys have a one-track mind. Is sports all you think about?"

Sirius grinned, "Not quite, Lily. We have two-track minds. I'll admit, we aren't able to multitask quite as well as you are, but we're better than that."

"What's the second track?" Lily asked, almost fearfully.

Liz kissed Sirius on the cheek. "Sex. That and sports, all they think about. Come on, James." James stood up and allowed Liz to pull him away from the table.

"Where are we going?" he asked, bewildered.

"You can't have forgotten! We're going shopping! Mum left me her credit card last night." James gulped. He had to mentally prepare himself for the day.

~*~

Throughout the whole day, James stared at his sister. His eyes widened more and more as Liz greeted each salesperson by name. His eyes though, soon were hidden behind a mound of clothes, shoes, jewelry, and chocolate. Liz pranced through countless stores, deliriously happy. "Girls," James muttered, "never tire of clothes. I've had enough clothes to last me a lifetime."

"Too bad," Liz called over the dressing room curtain, "you're going to have enough girlfriends, you'll see plenty more clothes."

"Funny, Liz. I happen to prefer seeing my girlfriends with_out_ clothing." Liz pushed the curtain aside and smacked her brother on the arm.

"I really hope that doesn't include Lily. What do you think?" She twirled around, a white Marilyn Monroe style dress flaring out around her.

"I dunno, it looks the same as the rest. I mean good. Great, Liz. It looks great." She smiled sarcastically.

"Thanks, James. You really have a flair for clothing choices. But, wait, before you make your final decision." A minute later, Liz emerged from the dressing room once again. This time, she was wearing a short red halter dress. "Do you think this one's better?" she asked breathlessly.

James stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Liz, do you really think I can tell the difference? They don't look any different to me."

"James," Liz said patiently, "you're not color blind. Does the red look better or the white? Just pick one."

"I can't decide. The stress is just too much. Get both, to save my mind from this horrible choice." Liz hugged her brother and flew back into the dressing room with inhumane speed.

"Great idea, Jamesie. This is why I love you."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." James caught the flying dresses with the unerring skill from his years of Quidditch practice.

"This is where you're supposed to say 'I love you too, Liz. You're the best sister ever.'" Liz encouraged.

"Right. That's what I meant."

~*~

Hours later, Liz and James returned from their shopping expedition, heavily laden with bags. They returned cheerfully, a contrast to Lily and Sirius's dark moods. "Hey, um, guys, what's going on?" Liz asked anxiously. Sirius glanced at her and pushed a letter across the table.

"You two got a letter." Liz shook her hair out of her face.

"It's probably just Mum, checking to see how the rest of the party went," Liz said.

"No, it's... it's from the Ministry." Lily curled up into a ball. Letters from the Ministry of Magic, especially hand-addressed ones like what was currently on the table, were never good.

"Give it here," James ordered. He ripped open the letter and Liz peered over his shoulder. She scanned the first few lines and burst into tears.


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: As much as I hate death scenes, I've been thinking that this story is overall too fluffy. And what's the best way to kill the fluff? A cliffhanger (see the last chapter) and some sad, evil attempts at seriousness. As you can tell, I much prefer Sirius-ness to seriousness. Haha... And also, sorry this took so long, my computer was experiencing some difficulties. Well, down to business. As usual, thanks Kat, please read and _review_!

Chapter 16

~*~

_"You two got a letter." Liz shook her hair out of her face._

_"It's probably just Mum, checking to see how the rest of the party went," Liz said._

_"No, it's... it's from the Ministry." Lily curled up into a ball. Letters from the Ministry of Magic, especially hand-addressed ones like what was currently on the table, were never good._

_"Give it here," James ordered. He ripped open the letter and Liz peered over his shoulder. She scanned the first few lines and burst into tears._

~*~

"What does it say?" Lily demanded, standing up and looking over James's shoulder.

"He-here." James sat down, his eyes wide with shock. Sirius glanced between him and Liz, a worried expression on his face. Lily began to read the letter out loud.

"_Dear Elizabeth and James Potter,_

_It is with great regret that we inform you of the death of your parents, Katherine and John Potter. They were killed in a terrible accident caused by Lord Voldemort. It was reported that they were hit with the Avada Kedavra curse on their way home from Hogwarts on the night of December 24__th__, 1976. We at the Ministry are truly sorry for your loss. Sincerely-"_

"Stop it!" Liz cried, "Just stop reading it! I don't want to- _hic-_ just, please, get me out of here. I'm going upstairs." She got up and ran up the stairs to her dormitory, wiping tears off her cheeks as she ran. Sirius stood up to follow her, but James put his hand on his shoulder.

"Wait," he said, his voice still a sad monotone, "Let me go first. I'll get her down to you two soon." Lily nodded, chewing on her fingernail. She couldn't imagine how James was so calm. She herself was overwhelmed with grief, and she didn't know the Potters nearly as well as their son had. James disappeared up the stairs swiftly. He couldn't let them see.

~*~

James opened the door without knocking. Liz was curled up in a ball on her bed, crumpled tissues littering the floor around her. She looked up at her brother, her eyes full of tears. Liz sniffled. "Why, James? Why did it have to go like this?" James stood against the four-poster bed, his own eyes fighting back the salty tears he knew would come, any minute.

"I know," he said softly, "I know." For several more hours, they sat, Liz's head attached to James's shoulder. Neither spoke. The only sound was the occasional sob or hiccup. As the sun was going down, hours later, James spoke suddenly. "I'm going to fight him," he whispered. "Voldemort. He's going to-I can't let this happen to anyone else. I won't let him kill another living being. I swear, I will bring him down, if it's the last thing I do."

"I know." Liz hugged her knees tightly to her chest. "Just so long as you let me help." For the first time in what felt like ages, the Potter siblings smiled. They took a deep breath and walked downstairs carefully. Sirius and Lily were waiting. When they heard James and Liz approaching, Lily jumped up.

"I'm so sorry," Lily said sadly.

"Don't be," James brushed her off. "I'll be fine." Sirius put his arm around Liz's shoulders. She had slunk over to him, and was leaning against him, biting her lip fiercely to keep the tears from falling.

"Are _you_ going to be okay?" he asked her.

"My parents were just killed, Sirius! How do you think I feel?" Liz snapped. Sirius tightened his grip. He knew no words were sometimes best.

~*~

The next morning, neither of the Potter siblings wanted to get up. They managed breakfast with much coaxing by Lily and Sirius, but skipped class the rest of the day. At dinner, they received a note. "That's Dumbledore's," James muttered, scanning the looping script. "He wants us to come to his office, right away." Liz wiped her eyes and followed her brother. It was hard for her to keep fro crying. Once they reached the gargoyle, James quickly said, "Er, lemon drops."

"How d'you-" Liz was cut off by the movement of the gargoyle, allowing them entrance. They fell silent, once again. Dumbledore was waiting, a sad look on his face.

"Please, sit down," he said pleasantly. They sat. There was an odd authority hidden in his voice.

"Professor, if this is about us not going to class today, we were-" Dumbledore held up his hand.

"Please, Mr. Potter. I have not called you here to punish you. I merely wish to express my condolences to you both."

"Well that's all well and good, but you didn't need to arrange this whole thing," Liz said rudely.

"Liz!" James hissed. Dumbledore nodded patiently.

"Mr. Potter, I do not mind. You and your sister have perfect reason to, shall we say, act out today." James nodded slowly. "However," he continued. Liz and James both stiffened noticeably. "I must admit, I lied."

"Oh, what a surprise!" Liz said, throwing her hands up in the air.

Dumbledore bowed his head gravely. "This was _not_ purely a social visit. The death of your parents will, unfortunately, force a sort of responsibility upon the two of you. Namely you, James, as you are the oldest."

"What responsibility?" James asked cautiously, glancing at the floor.

"A year before you were born, a prophecy was made. It was fairly simple, in essence, but in reality, much more difficult." Liz's teeth chattered together.

"What does it say?" she whispered.

Dumbledore stood up abruptly. "Lord Voldemort intends to purify the wizarding race. In his mind, magic should be kept within families. Meaning, away from Muggle-borns."

James curled his hands into fists. "That's-that's despicable."

Dumbledore nodded and gestured between the Potters. "Voldemort knows you two feel this way, and he knows that you will go down fighting for your friends. He plans on taking you down. As soon as he can."

~*~


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: Sorry this has taken so long for an update, but thank you to all my lovely readers who stuck with me! I got a little uninspired, worrying that my story was not interesting, and that no one liked it, but then I received some emails about a couple of authors, saying that I was on their favorite authors list, and they reviewed this story. And all of a sudden I knew exactly what to write. Anyway, where was I...

Chapter 17

~*~

"_Voldemort knows you two feel this way, and he knows that you will go down fighting for your friends. He plans on taking you down. As soon as he can."_

~*~

Liz shivered. James curled his fists even tighter. "So-so basically we're being hunted by-by an evil wizard who wants nothing more than to murder me, my sister, and my closest friends," James stuttered.

Dumbledore folded his hands over his desk. "Yes, that seems to be about right." Liz narrowed her eyes.

"How the hell are you so calm?" she cried hysterically.

"Because, Miss Potter, I do not believe that this is something we need to worry about at the present time."

"Easy for you to say," Liz muttered.

James raised his head and said politely, "With all due respect, sir, I think what Liz means to say is that you're not the one being hunted by Voldemort."

"I am not," Dumbledore acknowledged, "but I believe, as headmaster of this school, and given my extensive years in that position, I have some idea of what you are going through. And as hard as it may be, I beseech you to hear me out. Do not do anything until I tell you. You are not in danger yet, nor are your friends. If you plan to keep it that way for as long as possible, then you cannot mention this to another soul, living or dead. Keep it solely to yourselves. Do you understand me?" Liz and James both nodded. Never before had they seen Dumbledore's eyes so fierce, so flaming. They knew he meant it.

~*~

Liz and James walked silently back to the Gryffindor tower, neither saying a word about what they had just heard. Terror was not something either Potter handled well. Once or twice, James caught Liz's eye, and they seemed to share a sense of understanding. They were completely terrified, but they could not show it.

As soon as the portrait hole swung open, Sirius demanded, "What happened? What did he say?"

Lily, being the more sensitive of the two, said soothingly, "It's okay. You don't have to say anything if you don't want to." Sirius looked outraged.

"Of course they have to tell us! We've been cooped up in here for hours, no news, wondering if you fell off the face of the earth!"

"There is no need to be so dramatic, Sirius. I'm just saying that there's no need to accost them as soon as they walk through the door-"

James held his hands up. "Relax, Lils. He has every right to be curious." Sirius folded his arms and stuck his tongue out at Lily.

"Curious? It's none of his business!"

"And it's none of yours, either!" James said heatedly.

"Then I suppose being my boyfriend is none of your business, Potter!" Lily stomped out of the room. James glared at Sirius.

"Hey, don't look at me, Prongs. She didn't need to get her knickers all in a twist. I was just asking."

James gave him another withering glare before running up the stairs, calling, "Come on, Lily, I didn't mean that! Please don't ditch me! Dammit, Lils, open the door. Please."

Sirius asked Liz quietly, "You think they're going to be alright?" Liz rolled her eyes.

"You must have the shortest attention span I've ever seen. They break up every other-" She was cut off by a deep kiss. Then Liz broke away. "Hold on, I was in the middle of saying something."

Sirius smiled at her innocently. "Go on," he said. Liz tapped her fingers on her arm.

"You know, I can't remember."

Sirius grinned impishly. "Now who's got a short attention span, eh?"

~*~

Later that night, Lily and Liz laid across the floor, iPod headphones strewn around them. "This time, I swear, it's final," Lily was saying. Liz sighed.

"You say that every week, Lils. Trust me, by tomorrow night, you two will be up in his room, -"

"I wouldn't finish that sentence, if I were you," Lily threatened. Liz simply smiled.

"I was only going to say reciting poetry, but if you want to interpret it that way... I mean, is there something I should know about? Any new _activities_, perhaps?"

Lily sat up abruptly. "No!" she whispered. "We never- I haven't let him."

Liz nodded knowingly. "Mmhm. Soon enough, in my opinion."

"Oh, like you're one to talk."

Now Liz sat up as well. "And why is that, Lilykins?" she asked.

Lily smiled and patted her shoulder. "Sweetie," she said, "you're dating Sirius Black."

"Yes, I am. And you're dating James Potter. And Alice Johnson is dating Frank Longbottom! So what?"

"Liz, he's quite possibly the most notorious deflowerer in Hogwarts history. You're not a virgin. You simply can't be."

"I will have you know that I am, as a matter of fact," Liz sniffed, crossing her arms.

"Are you sure about that?" Lily said kindly.

"Yes, I'm sure! I think I would remember something like that, don't you?"

"Okay, if you say so. I'm just saying..."

"Look, Lily, in case you didn't realize, I'm only fifteen. I said when I'm ready, he said okay."

"And that's it?" Lily asked incredulously.

"Yes. That is it."

~*~

The remainder of the year passed by in a flurry of parties, detentions, and kisses. James and Lily continued the everlasting pattern of breaking up and making up, much to Sirius and Liz's amusement. "They have so much passion when they fight," Liz complained once, "why can't we fight more often so we can have that kind of passion?"

Sirius replied, chuckling, "We never fight, love. We have plenty of passion. We just show it in more useful ways than fighting to the death, like dear Prongs and Evans."

Liz giggled. "_So _much more useful."

"I heard that!" Lily called.

"I'm only speaking the truth, Lils," Liz replied. Lily simply hit her over the head.

~*~

On the train going home for the summer, James stared wistfully back at the castle. Liz was wrapped in Sirius's arms, giggling as he talked to her. Lily was splayed across a few seats, reading a book, her white shoe dangling off her foot. "Only one more year," James sighed, "and then we'll all be graduating."

Liz spoke up, "How many times do I have to remind you? I'm your _younger_ sister." James turned to her.

"So?" he said. She rolled her eyes.

"The point of a younger sister is that she's younger than you. I'm not graduating with you three. I've got another year. And you'll leave me here, all alone, and forget all about me." She sighed tragically.

Sirius said, "I could never-"

Lily cut him off impatiently. "Yes, yes, you could never forget about her. We went through this last year, remember?"

Liz and Sirius grinned and said in unison, "How could I forget?" James flinched.

He muttered, "Honestly, you two scare me sometimes." Liz blew her brother a kiss.

"That's what we're here for."

~*~


End file.
